


It's Just Chemistry, Right?

by Nexas_Hart



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: BAMF Peter Parker, Baker Peter Parker, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Harley Keener/Shuri (Marvel), Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Harley Keener & Peter Parker Friendship, Harley Keener is a Good Bro, Light Angst, Mentioned Ben Parker, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Parent Ramonda (Marvel), Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Troll Peter Parker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-01
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:07:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 26
Words: 23,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26754811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nexas_Hart/pseuds/Nexas_Hart
Summary: Peter Parker is a genius, superhero, vigilante. But there's something that only a few people know about. A hidden talent if you will.After all, a lot of it is just basic chemistry, and he's really good at that.
Relationships: Academic Decathlon Team (Spider-Man: Homecoming) & Peter Parker, Bruce Banner/Natasha Romanov, Charles Murphy & Peter Parker, Cindy Moon & Peter Parker, Clint Barton & Peter Parker, Clint Barton & Sam Wilson, Clint Barton/Laura Barton, Harley Keener & Harley Keener's Mother, Harley Keener & Harley Keener's Sister, Harley Keener & Harley Keener’s Mother & Harley Keener’s Sister, Harley Keener & Shuri, James "Bucky" Barnes & Peter Parker, James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, Loki & Peter Parker, Loki & Thor (Marvel), May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Nick Fury & Maria Hill, Nick Fury & Natasha Romanov, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts, Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Ramonda & Harley Keener, Ramonda & Shuri & T'Challa (Marvel), Ramonda & Shuri (Marvel), Ramonda & T'Challa (Marvel)
Comments: 202
Kudos: 1264





	1. Reminiscence

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter is a bit angsty. Made me tear up a bit while writing it, but the rest of them shouldn't be as bad.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day of mourning, but a day to start anew.

Chapter 1: Reminiscence

Peter hesitates in his reach. It’s been almost a year since he’s done this, and he’s unsure. This was always something that they did together. Something that brought a smile to his face after a rough day. The memories that surface almost bring him to tears. Still, he continues his reach, grabbing onto the thin fabric string.

He slips the black apron over his head, the word “Come to the Dark Side: We Have Cookies” emblazoned below a smiling Darth Vader mask holding a tray of the baked goods. Then, he begins pulling out ingredients. Flour, vanilla, eggs, and everything else he’ll need for what he has planned. Then, he starts mixing.

The recipe is something that he pretty much has memorized. Something that he’s made so many times before. The process is second nature to him. It takes a bit longer than it used to. Even with his enhancements, two people would still be faster than one. However, it isn’t too much time before he’s placed his creation in the oven.

***

When May Parker gets home from her shift, she’s not exactly in the best mood. She was called in to work a double at the hospital, even though she had specifically requested this day off. She couldn’t very well say no, so she went in. Now, she’s coming home later than she should. Peter’s been all alone today. She can’t even think about how he must be feeling.

The smell of chocolate fills her nose as she opens up the door. Baked chocolate. Something that she hasn’t smelled in this apartment for what’s close to a year now. She closes the door, tears beading up in her eyes as she sees Peter, standing in the kitchen. In front of him on the counter, he’s finishing the chocolate frosting on a beautifully crafted chocolate cake. Her hands cover her mouth as the tears spill out. Looking up, her nephew straightens, showing his Star Wars apron that had gone unworn for so long. He fixes her with a sad smile.

“It was his favorite,” he tells her. “I-I just couldn’t go through today without it.”

She runs around the counter, wrapping the young man in a hug.

“It’s wonderful sweetie. He would be so happy that you’ve started baking again.”

“I felt like he was here with me,” the boy sobs. “I-I just miss him so much.”

“I know,” she rubs his head, sniffling slightly. “I miss him, too.”

The stay like that for ten minutes, just crying about the loss they both feel so harshly. Then, they both rub their raw eyes and look at Peter’s creation.

“Cut me a slice, my little baker. I bet it still tastes just as good as when you last made it,” May smiles.

.

.

.

“Happy Birthday, Ben.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter in my Baker Peter Parker collection. Not much in the way of plot will be going into this, it'll mostly just be an idea dump. Send me suggestions and ideas.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	2. Electives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter has to choose a class for his next year. Luckily, he has his recently renewed hobby to fall back on.

Chapter 2: Electives

This is one of the few times that Peter’s genius has come back to bite him. Sure, when it’s paired with what May and Mr. Stark call his “complete lack of common sense and self-preservation” it’s a force to be reckoned with, but this time it’s completely the genius part. Today, he’s begun choosing electives for his junior year.

Freshman and sophomore year were fine. He had plenty to choose from. That was until his teachers realized just how smart this particular scholarship student was. They started putting test after test in front of him, trying to test his limits. Sure, he’s still only slightly above average in the Literary and Social Sciences, but every member of the staff gaped at his math and science scores. For that reason, by the end of sophomore year, he had pretty much tested out of every single science and math elective. He wasn’t even aware it was possible to test out of elective courses.

Junior year, he’s taking college credit courses offered to the seniors. He’s still only in the Honors classes for the non-science courses, and he got permission for early dismissal for his internship on one of the days after he actually turned in papers proving its existence. Now, he just has to choose two electives.

“Whatcha got so far?” May plops down on the couch next to him, snacking on a chocolate chip cookie that Peter stress baked. He hands her his first choice. She reads it. “Photography?”

“I started using the camera in the suit to take pictures of some of the cool views in New York,” Peter explains. “And I’ve heard that they give you a camera to use.”

“Okay,” she nods. “Have you thought of a second one?”

“No,” he shakes his head. “I mean, I can’t go back to band. They probably wouldn’t be as forgiving as decathlon at quitting marching band, and I don’t feel like doing anything else musical. I also don’t want to do anything too physically demanding. Can’t let people know I can bench press a truck.”

Aunt May shuffles through the stack before pausing and frowning. She hands him one.

“What about this?”

Peter accepts the paper, reading it. “Gourmet Foods?”

“A cooking and baking course,” she says. “You’ve started baking again, so it could be fun.”

“Plus,” Peter grins. “If I learn how to cook, we can have something edible in the house.”

Half a cookie hits him in the head as he laughs.

***

“Wasn’t expecting you here, Peter.”

Cindy Moon grins at him as they stand around in the classroom. It has a white board and a few large tables on one side, with four small kitchen areas on the other. The rest of the students in the class are loitering just like the two decathlon teammates.

“Mom says I need to be more ‘feminine,’” Cindy continues, frowning in distaste. “Thought taking this course would get her off my back enough to keep her from complaining too much about rec league.”

Hockey. Peter’s heard the fact that Cindy plays has been a sore spot with her mom. Peter himself thinks it’s pretty cool that the girl can bench more than half of the football team can, but I guess her parents don’t think so.

“So,” she keeps going. “What about you? I know that a good amount of the guys that apply for this are hoping to pick up girls. Are you one of them?”

Peter blushes at the implication. But he answers.

“I’ve kind of liked baking for a while now,” he scratches the back of his head awkwardly. “It was something I used to do with my uncle a lot.”

“That’s sweet,” a sad look flickers across her eyes. The same one he sees from most people when he mentions his uncle. Then, she smiles. “Well, even if I didn’t actually want to be here, I plan on making the most of it. So, let’s enjoy ourselves.”

They both fist bump as the teacher comes in to tell everyone to sit down.

***

The entire class is crowded around Peter and Cindy’s batch of cookies. Each of them is snacking happily on the creations, including the instructor. The teacher thought it would be pretty easy for a first lesson, seeing as the recipe was on the back of the chocolate chip bag. All of the students had different degrees of success.

Peter, for his part, tried one of the cookies before taking two small Ziploc bags and placing a few in each.

“I want to save some for a snack later,” he tells Cindy. “And I promised Ned that I’d let him have some, too.”

Now, he’s letting the class enjoy his creations while he goes around to the other batches that the class made. Cindy frowns as she looks over at him. He’s writing something on small pieces of paper and placing them next to the different plates.

***

They’re walking to decathlon practice later that day when she asks.

“What were you doing during class?”

He looks up at her, confusion on his face. “What?”

“After we finished baking, you walked around to the other plates and started writing things on paper for them. I thought they were corrections, but you didn’t even taste some of them.”

“Oh,” realization shows on the boy’s face. “No, you’re right. Those were corrections.”

“But you didn’t taste some of them.” A bit of shock shows on her face. “How do you know what they needed?”

“Cookies, especially with the recipe we used, are pretty easy to do that with if you know what you’re doing. How it bakes can tell whether they had too much or too little of an ingredient. On some of them, I could also smell it. I have a pretty good nose. It’s sort of a habit of mine, trying to help people do a little better each day. Especially when I know I can help. One of them,” his face twists in a sort of amused distaste. “Accidently switched the amounts for the salt and sugar. That must’ve been interesting for them when they put it in their mouths.”

That has Cindy laughing. “When you said you liked baking, I didn’t realize you were that good at it. Seriously, those were delicious. I know you did it with your uncle, but was he the one who introduced you to it?”

“Kind of,” Peter’s eyes go a bit distant at the memories. “I saw this article in a one of my science magazines when I was nine, I don’t even remember what one, but it talked about the chemistry involved in baking. I was always so enthusiastic about chemistry, but we’d already gone through most of the experiments that we could do at the house. Baking, however, is something we could do easily. While Uncle Ben started buying cheap recipe books and printing them off the web, I started looking more into the science behind it. You know, chemical reactions of ingredients and the biological aspects of taste, texture, smell, and those things.” He laughs a little. “It was a mess at first. I think the ingredients made it on the floor more than the pan during the first few weeks, but it just became one of the things Ben and I would do when he was home from work.”

Both of them walk in a companionable silence until they reach the practice room. Both of them understanding that they’ve just made a close friend.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought I'd use Cindy as the baking partner. I don't think I'll ship them, but I do think they'll be good friends. I felt like putting Ned in the class would limit my plot options, and MJ would be too stereotypical for me to be comfortable with this early in the collection.
> 
> I also wanted to put a small reference to Peter's enhancements and how he uses them to help with baking.
> 
> Hope you liked the chapter.
> 
> Like I said before, feel free to comment your ideas. It's nice to here them, and I'll credit you in the comments if I use them.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	3. Academic Eating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's snack time!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your comments. It's really encouraging to read them all.
> 
> Hope you like this chapter.

Chapter 3: Academic Eating

“Hey, guys! We made cupcakes!”

Cindy holds up the box of sweet creations as she walks into the decathlon room. Everyone looks up from their various tasks as Peter and her walk into the room. Cindy sets the box on the center table.

“No way,” Ned rushes forward. “You guys are awesome.” He looks inside. “They’re decorated!”

Everyone else comes to the table at a slightly slower pace, but they all gape slightly at what’s inside.

“We personalized each of them with the icing,” Cindy explains. She pulls one out. “This one’s Sally’s. I did it.”

“It’s a softball!” Sally gasps.

They start handing out the rest of them. Charles a double-helix that Cindy painstakingly finished due to his love of biology. Abe’s was the quadratic equation, also by Cindy. Flash, on the other hand. 

“You aren’t getting this unless you thank Peter.”

The cupcake in question is an intricately decorated Spider-man mask. Peter, despite Cindy’s misgivings, wanted to try his best on it. It’s kind of a pride issue.

Flash looks back and forth between the cupcake and Parker a few times before grumbling out.

“Thank you.”

Squinting in slight disapproval, she reluctantly hands over the sweet. Then, Peter hands out the last two.

“Dude,” Ned gasps. “How’d you get the numbers so small?”

“Very carefully,” Peter smiles. “It’s binary for the letters ‘GITC.’”

“Awesome.”

The guys do their handshake before Peter moves on to the final cupcake. Carefully, he walks over to MJ and holds out the creation. She gives a small smile at it.

“It’s-.”

“A black dahlia,” Peter finishes for her, his face starting to heat up.

“Like the murder.” They say together.

Sure enough, the flower is even more detailed than the mask or the code. He carved in the veins on the flowers and mixed a couple of other colors in to bring out different slight shades. Cindy made a comment that Peter could probably do pretty good in a painting class.

“Do you see what I see?” Sally whispers in Cindy’s ear.

“You should’ve seen his concentration when he was decorating the thing,” Cindy responds. “It was kind of cute.”

“Alright,” MJ snaps her and Peter out of their little trance. “We’ll have a snack before we start. Then, we’re going to do a few speed drills.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to do something cute, and I thought I'd add in a bit of Far From Home fluff to it.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	4. Taste Testing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony Stark: Genius, billionaire, superhero, philanthropist
> 
> Peter Parker: Genius, baker, superhero, people-person

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented. This is a suggestion from ship_all_the_ships_i_love.
> 
> Hope you like it.

Chapter 4: Taste Testing

“This one’s nice.”

“Good texture, and I know you like chocolate.”

Pepper Potts turns to the baker and gives him a smile. “Could we try some similar to this?”

“Of course, Ms. Potts.” The man bows before heading back into the kitchen with his staff.

Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts are planning their wedding. They’ve picked out the flowers. They have the venue planned. The arrangements of the tablecloths, napkins, place settings, and pretty much every other minor detail has been finished. They’ve decided the guest list, and the seating arrangements. Tony’s picked out his best man, and Pepper has her maid of honor. Now, one of the only things left to do, is find the cake.

It’s been a few days of choosing, and they’ve begun to narrow it down. The pastry chef has been patient, despite Tony’s little idiosyncrasies. The man says he’s been through worse brides in his life as a baker, so a whiney and picky billionaire isn’t that bad. While new batches of cake are made, the highest profile couple in the world discuss the decoration and cake toppers.

During this discussion, a certain energetic intern comes bouncing in for a visit.

“Hey, Mr. Stark,” Peter waves at his mentor. He looks down at the collection of cakes. “Whatcha doin?”

“Taste testing for the wedding,” he replies, smiling at his protégé.

“Which one are you choosing?”

“Haven’t decided,” the billionaire slides the plate in front of them over. “But we’ve got it to something close to this.”

Pepper holds out a fork for the boy. He takes a bite, savoring the taste for a few moments before smiling.

“Not bad,” he nods. He looks at Mr. Stark. “So, you want something similar to this?”

“Yeah.”

“And the icing?”

“Also, part of the decision process.”

Peter thinks for a few moments. “Can I try making something?”

This catches Tony by surprise. “You bake?”

“I’ve been getting back into it recently,” Peter blushes. “I kind of want to know what you think.”

Pepper gives the boy a soft smile. “I’d love to try something you make.”

“No strawberries, right?”

“If you would be so kind.”

“Go ahead, kid.” Tony motions over to the kitchen. “They’ve got their own personal mobile kitchen, so you can use ours. Let me know if you need any ingredients.”

***

Pepper and Tony stand there, amused, each of them eating a slice of the cake of their choice.

In front of them, the head baker is standing with the rest of his team. All of them have their own plates of cake in their hands as they listen to Peter rattle off his process. It’s an entertaining sight, seeing the group of adults, who were doubtful of the young boy’s abilities, now hanging on his every word as they snack on his creation. The scene kind of reminds Tony of when he introduced the kid to R&D at Stark Industries.

“Mr. Parker,” the pastry chef places a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “I am happy to have met you. Do you mind coming to my shop on occasion? I think we’d all love having you.”

Peter blushes. “S-Sure. I’m pretty busy right now, but I might be able to do it later in the year.”

“Anytime, kid. I’d just like to trade ideas with you. You’ve got a gift.”

***

After another few hours for the group to perfect Peter’s recipe, the professional bakers leave with tired, but satisfied, smiles on their faces.

“Mr. Stark,” the head baker holds his hand out. “If that kid is as good at science as he is at baking, he’s got a bright future ahead of him.”

“Believe me,” Tony Stark takes the man’s hand. “I know.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is about as fluffy as angel food cake. Just another chapter of Peter winning over everyone with his undeniable presence. I also thought it'd be nice for him to get the opportunity for some formal training in a baker's kitchen.
> 
> Anyways, I'm always open to suggestions for more chapters.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	5. Baked Caper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crime in the Compound!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to tell everyone on here that I appreciate all of your comments, and I read them whenever I need a boost.
> 
> I kind of want to say thank you to JaDePeacock specifically. Wasn't having that great a week, but I saw your comment. It was simple, but it really motivated me.
> 
> Anyways, this one's for you, but I also hope everyone else enjoys this.

Chapter 4: The Baked Caper

There’s a thief loose in the Compound. A sneaky, silent, and experienced thief. One that Peter is determined to catch. For you see, this person has committed an unforgivable sin. He hasn’t stolen technology, or information, or money, or any other valuables that might seem common throughout the building. No… What they have done is so much worse.

“If someone doesn’t tell me who stole the cookies, we are going to have a problem!”

He starts stomping through the suspiciously silent hallways, hunting for the culprit. Mr. Stark, in his annoying way, has forbidden FRIDAY from helping him. He just started laughing and said it would be “too easy” if he did that. Like this is a game. No, this is life or death.

“C’mon! That was the third batch you stole! I need those for the bake sale!”

Peter is straining all of his senses, tapping into his enhancements and the training these very same Avengers have given him, in order to try to pierce through the walls and hallways of the building to find any noise or indication of music.

“I’ll make you your own batch, your own choice of any flavor or type, if you come out and confess!”

He waits a few more minutes, but there’s nothing. Dammit, he thought that would work.

***

It takes hours to search the entire Compound, and he gets more and more frustrated as time goes on. Finally, though, he sees something on the ground. If he wasn’t looking for it, he probably would’ve missed it, but with how clean the floor usually is, and his enhanced senses, it sticks out. He kneels down to scrape up some of the evidence.

“Cookie crumbs.” The baker mutters.

He follows the trail as he keeps his eyes peeled and ears open. It’s his ears that catch the next clue. The wet sound of chewing the soft cookies he specifically baked today. He stares directly at the door that the noise is coming from. Flinging the door open, he fixes the culprits with his worst glare.

“Gotcha!”

The group of burglars turn in their guilt. Natasha, Clint, Bucky, Sam, and even Steve; mouths full of baked goods; stare at him, eyes wide.

“Peter…” Steve tries.

“Shut it!” the teen snaps. “I have to make ten more batches of cookies for the bake sale tomorrow! Right now, I’m down three batches, and down time to make more because I had to find the no-good thieves who stole all of them! And now that I’ve caught you, you’re going to pay!”

“Peter,” Clint starts chuckling nervously. “Let’s not doing anything you’ll regret.”

“Oh,” Peter smiles in a sinister way that sets the entire group on edge. “I’m not going to regret it, but you might.”

***

The young spiderling collapses back into the kitchen chair, sighing in relief.

“Finally. Done.”

“Does that mean we can come down?”

The perpetrators of the theft are hanging from web cocoons, all weapons removed from their persons, and in such a way that they can’t put any strength to break their bindings. On the table between their hanging figures, are freshly baked cookies. Their steam is wafting up as they cool. Peter’s been sure to regularly replace them with another batch once the previous is cool. The smell is tempting to the regular humans, but Peter can tell that it’s torture for the two enhanced super soldiers. Serves them right.

“Nope,” Peter pops. “I used the long-lasting formula to web you up. You’ll be up there until I’m already at school. Have a good night.”

Peter packs up the remaining cookies and switches the lights off.

“Clint, Sam,” Bucky growls. “I’m blaming you for this.”

“Agreed,” Steve sighs.

“Definitely at least ninety percent,” Natasha tells the two of them. “And I only got a few of the cookies. I’m going to sleep.”

.

.

.

“Hey, guys, my nose itches.”

“Shut up, Clint!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peter had a lot of time to think of a punishment while he was searching.
> 
> Also, my headcanon is that Nat has a sweet tooth, and you can pry that from my cold, dead hands. She also knows she deserves the punishment, despite the minimal reward she'd managed to receive.
> 
> Give me ideas! I'm running low on them myself.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	6. Kidnapped?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's not answering his phone. Not usually a good sign.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> JaDePeacock, I sort of combined two of your prompts into a short little fluff piece.
> 
> Enjoy.

Chapter 5: Kidnapped?

“Hey FRIDAY, could you track Peter’s phone?”

“Really, Tony? Is this necessary?”

Pepper is frowning at her fiancé, with the Avengers around having various reaction to the incident.

“But he’s never not answered his phone before,” the billionaire explains. “Especially not after the third call. Something has to be wrong.”

“He could be sleeping in,” Clint suggests. “He’s a teenager, and it is the weekend.”

“Really?” Stark gives the man a look. “You’re telling me that the boy who’s woken up Steve for their morning runs would sleep in just because it’s the weekend?”

“Okay,” Bucky joins in. “Maybe he’s with that MJ girl? I know he’s talked about going on a few dates with her. He might have his phone off so it doesn’t distract them.”

“His phone is on,” the panicking mentor waves the comment off. “And it looks like it’s in the warehouse district.”

“That is suspicious,” Steve Rogers frowns as the location is pulled up in front of them. “And he’s not in his suit?”

“No,” Tony shakes his head. “And it hasn’t been used for the past two days. He could be in danger. FRIDAY, get my suit ready.”

“Wait,” Natasha stops the man. “Let’s not go in guns blazing.”

“But that place is a prime area to keep kidnapping victims, and you know the kid wouldn’t do anything to reveal his identity if it put civilians in danger.”

“Which is why, even if this is a kidnapping, he wouldn’t want us to draw to much attention to it,” the super spy explains. “Which is why we should use a stealth approach. Keep a suit on standby, but we need to evaluate the situation first. You know Peter wouldn’t want to inadvertently harm his fellow hostages with rushed action.”

That sobers up the man a little, but there’s still anxiety in his look.

“Tony,” Pepper sets a calming hand on his arm. “This is just a worst-case scenario. He’s probably fine. When we get there, there will be a perfectly reasonable, and safe, explanation for this.”

“And if it’s not,” Clint stand up and stretches. “We’ll bring a few weapons with us.”

***

As the Avengers look at the scene in front of them in their nondescript vehicle, they can’t help but smile. This isn’t really what they were expecting, but they aren’t surprised.

“I believe an ‘I told you so’ is suitable for this moment,” Pepper laughs a little.

Truthfully, she had her own fears about the situation, but what she sees just causes her to understand just how amazing the boy her fiancé is mentoring really is.

There’s a long line of canopies spread out along the street they are on. Underneath those canopies, there’s a line of tables with people handing out food, drinks, and various other necessities to people in various levels of worn out and torn clothing. In the middle of the volunteers that are handing out the food, the Avengers can see Peter Parker, with a few of his friends from school, handing out rolls and pastries for the homeless. Tony would bet his fortune that the kid had a hand in making those, and he would wager a guess that the amount available has something to do with him not patrolling for the past couple of days. They watch as an elderly lady giggles at something the boy says before giving his cheek a kind pinch.

“Should we go say hi?” Clint is grinning widely at the scene. “I’m sure they’d appreciate a visit from the Avengers.”

“I don’t think so,” Nat shuts him down. “There are probably some of them who would feel uncomfortable with our presence. For a lot of people, we’re seen as a form of law enforcement, which doesn’t sit well with people who have been driven out of places they’ve been living. Plus, although Stark has tried his best, there are still more than a few homeless we’ve created through our property damage. Add on that some of them hate billionaires and celebrities as a rule, with good reason a lot of times, it’s better if we don’t appear without warning.”

“I have to agree with Natasha,” Pepper nods. “It’s better for us to leave this alone. It’s going well enough, so we shouldn’t throw anything unexpected into this.”

“Still,” Steve sits back in his seat. “You can’t help but feel a little proud.”

The rest of the Avengers nod in agreement. They’re all thinking the same thing. Peter Parker or Spider-man, it doesn’t matter. He’s going to be the best of us.

***

“Mr. Stark,” Peter frowns as he puts his phone back in his pocket. “Why did the monthly charity that I help out with, the one that I didn’t tell anyone here about, just get millions of dollars in anonymous donations?”

Tony Stark, smug billionaire, shoots a grin towards his intern. “Because it’s a good cause, and you should answer your phone when I call. Also, Nat, Bucky, and Clint want to join you at the next event.”

A smile grows on his mentee’s face. “Thanks, Mr. Stark.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	7. Comfort Food

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has a bad day. Everyone gets stressed sometimes. You know what you do when that happens. You eat desserts! Why? Because stressed spelled backwards is desserts!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bbblaney77 and JaDePeacock, you both had a similar idea, and I loved both of them. I decided they would probably be best in the same chapter.
> 
> The third part was also partially thought up by Tpo117 and his comment. I might do more with it later, but the comment did inspire me a bit.
> 
> Hope you all enjoy this.

Chapter 7: Comfort Food

Wanda’s been having a bad week. Vision’s been away on a mission, Clint had to go back to the cabin because Nate is sick, and the anniversary of her parents’ deaths is approaching.

Right now, she’s curled up on the couch of one of the many wings of the Compound, Nat hugging her gently. She appreciates the fact that the spy treats her so well. Almost like an older sister. She especially is thankful for it today, because the telepath can feel the anxiety and sadness coming off of the older woman in waves. Natasha Romanov has her own struggles today, and the two girls are trying to get through it together.

The rest of the team is also doing their part in helping. It’s not the same as them being there in person, but both Clint and Viz are keeping in contact. There are two cups of tea, curtesy of Bruce Banner. He stayed for a few minutes to talk. He knows a lot about calming techniques. It was appreciated, but the two girls eventually decided that being alone with each other was the best. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts have equipped this wing with all non-Stark brand items. It’s helped some days. All of the remaining members of the team have pretty much become runners; if the two women want something, the others get it.

What they didn’t order, however, was a covered silver platter slowly lowered from a vent by a strand of webs. It’s set on the coffee table in front of them with a soft clink. The vent closes as an unseen Little Spider scampers back down the vents.

Both of them equally curious, Natasha leans forward and lifts up the lid to the tray.

“It’s-.”

“Ptichye moloko.”

The thick Russian cake sits on the tray with two plates, a knife, and a fork.

“Peter,” Natasha smiles. “He knows it’s my favorite.”

Wanda starts tearing up. “I remember that Pietro saved up to buy me a slice when we were younger. It was one of my best memories when we were kids.”

The two of them dig into the light, moist cake, sighing in happiness at the taste and the memories it brings back.

***

She can feel a headache coming on. All of the screens and paper. Having to talk to people who still underestimate her, completely disregard her, or still think that she slept her way to this position. At least she hasn’t had to fire anyone lately for openly jumping to that conclusion, and everyone on the major boards understand that she more than has the abilities to be CEO of Stark Industries.

All of this is why, after she dealt with one of the rare people who still view her as just “Tony Stark’s fiancé,” she just delegated the job to one of the other board members and is now rubbing her temples while leaning back in her chair. She almost screams when she hears a knock at her door. Instead, she just calls to the person behind it.

“Come in.”

Pepper Potts almost sighs in relaxation as Peter Parker peeks his head through the door.

“Peter, honey, come in,” she smiles. “What can I do for you?”

“I-I kind of want you to try something.”

The teenager walks through the door, holding a piece of pie in his hand.

“What’s this?” She frowns thoughtfully. She’s always happy to test his creations, but she always likes to know what she’s eating.

“I was looking online for ideas when I remembered that you said strawberries used to be your favorite snack before you developed an allergy for them. I found this apple, called a Chenango Strawberry Apple. It’s a less common apple, but it has a strawberry taste to it. I figured I could make something for you so that you could taste strawberries again without having an allergic reaction. So…” he sets the plate in front of her.

Great, now she feels like crying. As she takes a bite of the creation, tears really do start running down her cheeks.

“Oh, Peter,” she wraps him in a hug. “This is delicious. Thank you.”

***

Martin Richardson isn’t this type of person. He knows it, but he’s desperate. He holds his kitchen knife in his hand, back up against the wall of the alley. He’s skipped by the past ten people tonight, but he needs the money, no matter how much they have. The next person to walk by-.

“You know, the dark side lied about having cookies.”

The wannabe mugger spins around, brandishing the knife in his shaking grip. In front of him, however, is just the empty alleyway that he’s been in for the past two hours.

“Pst, up here.”

Once again shocked by a voice, the man looks up to see a lanky figure with stark white eyes seemingly floating above him. As his eyes adjust, he can make out the subtle hints of red and blue of the familiar, form fitting, suit. He recognizes the man in front of him from the videos his kids watch.

“You’re Spider-man.”

“And you have a knife drawn in an alleyway in the middle of the night,” the vigilante quips back. “Doesn’t seem like you’ve done anything yet, and seeing as you’ve been hesitant to do so for at least the past half an hour, I’m guessing you don’t usually do stuff like this.”

Shock shows on Martin’s face as he stares at the hero. “You were watching me?”

“I was taking a lunch break. Speaking of which, wait right here.”

As Spider-man webs off, Martin Richardson considers making a break for it. He doesn’t think he can outrun the noticeably enhanced hero, but maybe he can lose the guy in the crowds on some of the busy streets. However, his chance is gone because the other man webs his way back a less than a minute later with something in his hand. Martin frowns. It looks like a plastic food container.

Spider-man opens the lid and pulls something out, holding it out to the would-be mugger. “The dark side might not have cookies, but I do. There peanut butter, chocolate chip, so I hope you don’t have any food allergies.”

Looking at the sweet in the red gloved hand, Martin Richardson licks his lips. He’s not sure if it’s just because he’s had to skimp on meals for the past couple of days, or the fact that the cookie is freshly made, but he can smell the delicious scent wafting up from the thing. He reaches out and takes the cookie, munching on it with abandon. Tears bead up in his eyes as he realizes what a kind gesture the hero showed to him, despite the fact that he was about to become a criminal.

“Delicious,” he sniffles.

“I’m glad you like them,” the lenses in the red and blue suit squint in obvious happiness. “I made them myself.” The vigilante holds out the container. “You can have the rest of them if you promise to go home.”

It doesn’t take long to make a decision. Martin Richardson just watches as the spider hero webs off into the New York City skyline, finishing off another cookie. He looks down at what’s in his hands, a knife and container of sweets. It’s at that time that he remembers something. Something from months ago, that was just said in passing by someone he barely even talked to in high school. A job. Maybe it’s still open. He has a call to make at home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I looked up popular Russian desserts, and this one seemed like it would taste really good. I also added Wanda in because she's amazing and deserves comfort, too.
> 
> The apple in the story is real. I used to grow them back when my family owned an orchard. They really do have a slight strawberry taste to them, which I thought was really cool. They're just more difficult to grow because they're an older apple and more susceptible to diseases.
> 
> One of my favorite things about Spider-man is that there are so many examples of him not just stopping a crime, but also helping people so that they don't commit the crime in the first place. He's not just the stereotypical vigilante, he looks out for the little guy in any way he can.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	8. Eventful Evening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's at the bakery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your comments. Hope you like this next short little clip.

Chapter 8: Eventful Evening

“Welcome, what can we do for you today?”

“Hello, we’re looking for a baker for a wedding.”

“Well,” Peter smiles at what seems to be a mother and daughter pair in front of him. “Our event planner is in the office, but I’ll go get him if you’d wait right here.”

“That’s perfectly fine,” the mother smiles at him. “We’re waiting for her father, brother, and fiancé anyways.”

The teen heads into the back and grabs Nicholas. He’s been coming down the bakery when he had ever since Mr. Stark’s wedding. He helps them out and learns from the bakers while he does. It’s been fun learning from professionals about things that you don’t get a chance to find out about at home. Plus, ever since people found out this was the bakery that made the cake for the highest profile wedding of the past few decades, they’ve been swamped with orders and people wanting them for their own events. They were more than happy for the extra hand, along with the talent and energy Peter brings to the kitchen.

Nicholas, the planner that stays at the store for walk ins, and Peter come back into the front room, all smiles and enthusiasm. With the instincts of a seasoned event planner, Nicholas immediately zeroes in on the soon-to-be bride. This might not be one of those places that hikes up prices at the mention of “wedding,” but it doesn’t mean that they won’t do anything in their power to sell as much as they can. Peter’s tried everything, hell, he helps make a lot of it; he knows it’s more than worth the price.

“Peter,” Nicholas nods towards the register. “Looks like Ms. Everett is here to pick up the cupcakes for her party. You know where it is?”

“Yep,” the teen smiles.

He waves at Ms. Everett before heading to the back again, as Nicholas approaches the two women.

Peter walks back out a few minutes later with a few boxes worth of cupcakes. He sets them down with a smile.

“Here you are Ms. Everett, enjoy your party.”

“Thank you,” she smiles. “These are always so good. I just wanted to share them with my friends.”

“It’s our pleasure.”

After she leaves with her order, Peter looks over at Nicholas. It looks like the father and brother just got here. The young employee is about to look away, when he has to do a double take.

“Charles?”

The brother turns around and looks at Peter, shock shows on his face.

“Peter?”

The other three family members turn around to look as Charles Murphy walks over to the counter. The two teens fist bump.

“I knew you were good at baking after all of the stuff you and Cindy bring to practice, but I didn’t know you worked at a bakery.”

“It’s a fairly new thing,” Peter scratches the back of his head. “I do it in between school and my internship.”

“That’s awesome.”

“Peter,” Nicholas speaks up. “Do you know them?”

“Yeah,” the young baker nods. “Charles and I are on decathlon together.”

“Peter bring us baked goods from his Gourmet Foods class,” his friend explains.

“Well,” the event planner smiles. “That makes things better. We actually have a friends and family discount, and any friend of Peter is a friend of ours.”

“Oh,” Charles’ sister gasps. “Thank you so much.”

“It’s no problem at all.”

***

“I was wondering…”

The bride trails off. Her mother looks at her, questioningly.

“What is it?” Her fiancé smiles, reassuring.

“Could we try some of the cake that was at the Stark wedding? I mean, it’s probably really expensive and difficult to make, but it looked so good in the picture and it’s one of the reasons why we heard about your bakery in the first place.”

“That’s no problem,” Nicholas smiles. “It’s actually not very expensive, and we get that request a lot, so we regularly have some of it premade. Would you all like a slice?” The rest of the group nods enthusiastically. “Peter, could you go get the cake?”

It doesn’t take long for Peter to return. They keep those cakes close to the front due to the sheer number of requests. He sets the cake down and cuts a piece for each of the group.

“Mmm,” the bride sighs.

“This is delicious,” the groom agrees.

Everyone else seems to love the cake, too. It’s a pretty common thing, but it always feels nice watching people enjoy his creation.

“You know,” Nicholas smiles at the group. “It’s actually Peter’s recipe that was used in that cake.”

The wedding group turns to the young teen in shock.

Charles gapes at him. “No way.”

“Yeah,” the event planner laughs. “It’s actually how the bakery met the kid. He apparently interns with Tony Stark. He made a cake to sample while the Starks were choosing cakes. Needless to say, everyone loved it.”

“Dude,” Charles laughs. “I mean, most of us thought you were telling the truth about the internship, but you’ve actually met Tony Stark?”

“More than that,” Mr. Murphy’s eyebrows rise. “If he can bake for them.”

“Yeah,” Peter smiles. “But besides that, what do you think of the cake.”

“This is the one,” Charles’ sister tells him. The groom nods along with her.

“Great,” Nicholas smiles. He opens the binder up again. “Now, there are a few more things that we have to decide on. Then, we’ll be able to figure out the cost. After that, I could introduce you to a few florists and decorators if you don’t already have some.”

“We already have people for that,” the mother smiles. “Thank you.” 

“Okay,” the planner slides the binder. “Then let’s get started.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I only have the barest understanding of event planning after working with a few restaurants and helping plan a couple of weddings.
> 
> Anyways, this was just a short little thing about Peter being at the bakery. For some odd reason, I really like Charles Murphy. There's next to no actually background or anything about him, even in the comics as far as I could find, but that just makes it all the more fun to flesh him out a bit more.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	9. You Are What You Eat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This class is great.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short and shameless fluff that I had to write as soon as it popped into my head.
> 
> I regret nothing.

Chapter 9: You Are What You Eat

“Alright, Peter. You’re next.”

Everyone in class is patiently waiting for him to show what he’s created. As one of the fun little projects the teacher has assigned, each student had to make a dish that they thought fit their class partner in some way. As such, Peter walks over to the freezer, and pulls out a covered pan. When he pulls off the top, he smiles.

“It’s a layered ice cream cake,” he tells the class. “Cindy’s really good at ice hockey, so I wanted something that would show that. Plus, the multiple flavors show how she has so many different talents and interests.”

He cuts open the cake, giving the first slice to his partner while handing out slices to everyone else in the class. Like always, everyone is enjoying his creation. Also, like always, he has enough left over to bring to decathlon later.

Everyone goes around the room, revealing their own delectable foods. Most of them aren’t baked goods, like the salmon dish for the boy who likes fishing and the dehydrated apple slices for the teen who has a dry sense of humor and fruit trees in their backyard. Finally, one half of each of the pairs has presented, and it is now Cindy’s turn.

She grins triumphantly as she sets down a large platter in front of everyone. She removes the top, showing a delicious sight. That sight, however, also causes multiple students to snort in amusement or even start outright laughing. She smiles at the students that show their understanding of her reference. The teacher and Peter, are two who don’t get it.

“Well, Cindy,” the instructor smiles. “I can see that a few people seem to like your presentation, but I don’t seem to understand the joke.”

“It’s pretty obvious,” the girl is full on beaming. “Peter Parker is a cinnamon roll.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was just so fitting that I couldn't resist.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	10. Date Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Coming home to a sweet sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to frozenchaos9 for your comment. This wasn't exactly what you asked for, but this idea did come from it.

Chapter 10: Date Night

“That was nice.”

“Yeah.”

“It was very relaxing.”

The three couples walk through the Compound to the elevator. Clint and Tony are a little wobbly on their feet, and even Pepper had a few drinks. The only ones who are completely sober after this date night are Nat, Bruce, and Laura. They enter the elevator and ride up to the top.

“The meal was delicious,” Tony sighs. “And the drinks were very good.”

“We can tell,” Laura smiles at the billionaire and her husband.

Tony lets out a laugh. “Yeah, but I gotta say, the dessert was…”

He trails off, his comment left unsaid, but understood.

“I gotta agree with you there,” Nat nods at the thought. “I think we’ve started to become a little spoiled.”

“That’s true,” Clint laughs along with Stark. “Wonder how the kid is doing right now.”

“He should be here with MJ,” Pepper smiles at the duo. “They had their own date planned today.”

“Got it,” Clint mumbles. “Stay away from his bedroom.”

Laura slaps his arm. “Don’t be like that. They’re probably just relaxing on the couch watching movies like they normally do.”

The elevator doors open, and FRIDAY sounds through the speakers.

“Welcome home, Boss,” her volume is quieter than normal. “Protocol Sleeping Spider is initiated in the common area.”

The adults all glance at each other, smiling slightly as they head in that direction. Peter’s fallen asleep on the couch on more than one occasion. The fact that MJ is probably with him is makes them want to see this.

They all creep into the common area to see an interesting sight. The TV is off, which isn’t weird. FRIDAY turns off whatever media the teens are using when they fall asleep. What is interesting is that the couches and chairs in the living room are unoccupied. Instead, there’s a mess in the kitchen.

Dishes are piled in the sink, flour covers the counter, and ingredients are strewn about it as well. On a pedestal, on that same counter, is a well-crafted, perfectly iced, chocolate cake. A piece of it is missing, showing the two layers that make up the creation.

“Guys,” Natasha whispers, motioning them towards the other side of the counter.

The other five creep over to peek around seeing a sight that tugs on their heartstrings.

Peter and Michelle are fast asleep, curled up around each other, on the floor of the kitchen. Their clothes are a mess, wrinkly and covered in flour, with the white baking ingredient splotching up their hair as well. There’re chocolate crumbs covering their slightly puffed up lips as they both have peaceful smiles on their faces.

“How sweet,” Laura coos. “They had a baking date.”

“More than that,” Tony laughs quietly. “Check out the lips, clothes, and the flour. Looks like they had a little fight with the ingredients that ended very well.”

“Oh, stop it,” Pepper chides her fiancé. “It’s better than what you’ve done in the past. At least they have their clothes on.”

“She’s not wrong,” Clint says, mouth sounding full.

The entire group turns to look at him. During the exchange, he had grabbed a plate a cut himself a sizable piece of the cake. He is currently swallowing another bite. Bruce is standing there, with his own plate in hand, taking his first bite.

“Seriously?” Natasha shoots the two men a look. “I can understand Barton, but Bruce, really?”

He gives a slightly guilty shrug. “Sorry, we were just complaining about the dessert at the restaurant, I was craving something like this, and they’ve already had a piece.”

“He does have a point,” Tony says, sneaking his own plate out of the cupboard. He looks back at the women. “Want some?”

The remaining three look at each other, slight exasperation on their faces, still…

“It should be fine,” Laura agrees.

“I’m sure Peter wouldn’t mind,” Pepper analyzes. "It was more than likely to share anyways."

“Let’s just make sure we leave some for them when they wake up,” Nat sighs. “And make sure you cut me a large slice.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	11. Death by Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a frozen free for all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments on the last chapter.

Chapter 11: Death by Chocolate

The Avengers come home from a mission, each of them exhausted from fighting against this month’s megalomaniac. The man himself wasn’t really too threatening or dangerous, but he used slime monsters. That’s right, slime monsters. And some of them even exploded. The team has pretty much cleaned off all of the gunk from the creatures, and they’re lucky that there aren’t any injuries, but none of them will feel completely clean until after a long and warm shower.

They step off of the quinjet to an interesting, but not unique, sight. Michelle Jones is standing at the door to the Compound, a large plate in one hand and fork in the other.

“Hey, Jones,” Tony exhales, looking around. “Where’s Peter?”

“Helping the police and Luke Cage with a sting,” she shrugs. “He’ll be back later.”

The billionaire is about to walk past when something Clint says stops him.

“Is that Peter’s triple chocolate marble ice cream cake?”

Michelle takes another bite of the dessert. “Yep. He made one while you were gone. Him, Pepper, and I have already eaten most of it, but there should be at least one piece left.”

There’s a pause, as the entire team processes this before Clint books it to the door of the Compound. He doesn’t get very far before he’s tackles by Sam Wilson. As the Falcon starts scrambling up again, now in front of Hawkeye. Before he can get up, however, his ankle is grabbed by the downed Avenger and he’s also brought back to the ground. Neither of them is able to get up in time, because Steve and Bucky quickly sprint past the pair that is wrestling on the ground.

The two supersoldiers almost make it to the door when something hits them from behind, causing electricity to course through their bodies. Natasha Romanov, the Black Widow, vaults over their now prone forms, her Widow Bites armed, as she enters the door.

For the next fifteen minutes, it’s an all-out brawl between Avengers as they all race to the kitchen. The team gets more bruises and injuries from this than they did the mission. It’s understandable, though. There’s cake on the line.

They all almost fall over each other as they surge into the common area, fighting for the front of the pack.

“What the fuck is going on?”

The Avengers, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, look up from their dogpile. Sitting at the dining room table, staring at the group is Colonel James Rhodes.

“Rhodey,” Tony gives a sheepish smile. “When did you get back, Honeybear?”

“Just a couple of hours ago,” he raises an eyebrow, slight grin on his face. “What’s all this?” He indicates the pile.

“Peter made cake,” Clint tells him, as if that answers everything.

“Oh,” the grin slips off of the Iron Patriot’s face. He looks down in front of himself on the table. “Sorry, I think you’re going to be a bit disappointed.”

“No,” Sam’s eyes widen as he realizes what James is saying.

As the Falcon stands up, he sees the top of the table. On it, is an empty cake dish, and a fork.

“Rhodey,” Tony whines as he stands up. “How could you?”

“It’s not my fault,” he tries to excuse himself. “I’d just gotten back from a conference in DC. I’ve been dealing with politicians for the past three days, and I just saw the cake. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had anything made by Peter?”

“Not even the crumbs are left,” Clint looks at the completely clear dish in sorrow.

“I’m going to go shower,” Natasha grumbles.

The rest of the team starts clearing out with the same amount of disappointment. They still have to get cleaned up from their mission.

When they’ve left, Michelle comes walking back into the room. She sets her dishes in the sink. Then, she relaxes into the chair across from Rhodey, propping her legs up on the table.

“Think we should tell them that there’s another cake in the freezer?” The Iron Patriot asks the teen.

“Let’s wait until after Peter gets back,” Ms. Jones sighs. “It’ll be payback for all of the times they’ve stolen his food while it’s still cooling.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nat's the lucky one that has a non-lethal and compact weapon to assist her, so I felt like it would be fun for her to use it.
> 
> Rhodey deserves that slice, and Troll MJ is always fun to write.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	12. Those Sweets are Divine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some visitors to the Compound leads to an interesting development.

Chapter 12: Those Sweets Are Divine

“Greetings, friends!”

“Hey there, big guy,” Tony smiles, stepping off of the quinjet.

The rest of the team follows close behind, including a certain Peter Parker, who has just stepped out of his Iron Spider suit and is gaping at Thor, the God of Thunder.

“No way,” the teen stares at the Asgardian in shock. “You’re Thor.”

“Yes, young one,” he chuckles. “And you must be the young spiderling I have heard about.”

Said spiderling’s face spreads into a wide smile. “You’ve heard about me?”

“Of course! The Spider-man! Protector of the Borough of Queens! I regularly receive transmissions from Stark about your exploits.”

The boy is blushing now. “I mean, I’m that great.”

“Nonsense,” Thor pats him on the shoulder. “You must regale me with your own tales of battles fought.”

“He can regale later,” Tony ruffles his protégé’s head. “Right now, I believe there is a reason you wanted us to rush back from the exercise.”

“Oh, right!” Peter’s eyes widen in realization. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Thor, but I gotta go.”

With that, the teen books it inside. Tony, and the rest of the team, look on in fond amusement.

“He seems full of life,” Thor smiles at his companions.

“Yeah,” Tony chuckles. “He brings an energy with him wherever he goes.”

“Just don’t get him angry,” Clint pipes up. “He’ll leave you hanging in a web cocoon overnight.”

“I assume you speak from experience,” the Asgardian lets out a hearty laugh. “I will be sure to heed your warning, Barton.”

“So, Mr. Thor,” Tony mocks a bit. “Our door’s always open, and your room is kept clean, but what brings you to our branch of the tree?”

“Merely a cordial visit,” the god responds. “My brother and I are touring your planet. I was thinking of finding something like a waypoint to allow for more interaction between my people and the Midgardians.”

As great as that sounds to every member of the team, there’s something else in that explanation that sets them on edge.

“Loki is here?” Natasha frowns.

“Yes,” Thor seems completely unfazed. “He is in the commons area.”

“Fuck,” Tony’s eyes widen. “That’s where Peter was going.”

The entire team runs into the Compound, Thor a little less panicked than the others. They don’t even bother with the elevator, just racing straight up the stairs. They slide into the doorway, almost crashing into each other, but on guard for anything that might be happening. Well, almost anything.

“Alright,” Peter smiles at the god that once tried to take over the world. “Now we need to cut the rolls about equal in width. About,” he cuts one with his own knife. “That wide. Got it?”

“Right,” Loki smirks. “I think I can do that, young one.”

As pretty much all of them know, Loki is fairly good with knives. It doesn’t take long for perfectly uniform rolls to be the only thing left on the board.

“Okay,” Peter claps his hands together. “I’ve coated the pan. Now, all that’s left is to place them on and put them in the oven.” He does just that. “Alright, FRIDAY, could you please let me know when they’re done.”

“Of course, Peter,” the AI responds.

He turns back to Loki. “I usually put on a timer, but FRIDAY can actually give me a pretty good calculation of when the cinnamon rolls will be golden brown. She’s better than any timer.”

“Thank you, Peter,” the slightly robotic voice sounds from the ceiling.

“Either way,” he continues. “I always check them every ten minutes.” He suddenly notices the audience that has gathered in the doorway. “Hey, Mr. Stark! Loki’s helping me make cinnamon rolls. He’s so cool.”

“I can see that,” the billionaire superhero snaps out of his shock.

“Well, brother,” Thor walks through the door. “I would very much like to try what you have made when they are finished.” He looks back at the assembled team. “I would also like to request that a room be set aside near me for him to sleep in. If that would be suitable?”

“Just,” Stark sighs, waving his hand dismissively. “You can pick an empty room, and I’ll have some linens and basic necessities brought up. As long as you keep him out of the public eye, and he doesn’t try to take over anything larger than a small village, we should be fine.” He turns around to leave. “I’m still tired and grimy from the training, so I’m going to go take a shower before dealing with anything else.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	13. Secret Baker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone else can bake in the Compound. Peter gives them some encouragement.

Chapter 13: The Secret Baker

Peter’s enhanced.

That’s pretty obvious to everyone in the Compound. He’s stronger, faster, and has greater reaction speeds than even the most highly trained soldiers.

His senses are also enhanced. His sight is better than Hawkeye’s. He can hear people’s heartbeats if he focuses and pick up everything that happens inside of his and the surrounding apartment buildings at his place; a blessing and a curse. He’s still working on perfecting it, but he has an almost instinctive feel for vibrations through walls and his webs. He can even feel the shifting in the air around him. He thinks all of this is part of what causes his Spider-Sense.

Two senses that he hadn’t really noticed before he started baking were his senses of taste and smell. Before that, he just had to do his laundry a bit more often, and pack his own lunches. Now that he’s started to use them more, though, he’s started to notice things.

He started to have to make more of his meals. Unless they’re something he really likes, he hates it. He can choke down anything, because Nat and Clint taught him survival skills, but his sense of taste has started to become way too sensitive. Mr. Stark took him to a five-star restaurant, and the staff there thought he was a critic in disguise. He used to like spicy food before all of this. When he tried eating a pepper after the spider bite, he felt like he was dying.

He’s turned into kind of a neat freak in his room and at home. May is completely fine with it because he goes out of his way to do the chores when the smell gets too much for him. He hates the locker rooms at school, because, even though aerosol cans are banned, there’s still guys spraying on deodorant. He can’t be in there for very long, but he’s given the excuse of his asthma acting up again for that.

Now, he’s in the Compound, as that same sense of smell picks up something. He’d woken up hungry. As he approaches the kitchen, there’s something that his nose happens to pick up. Not a bad smell, thank goodness. Hell, it’s actually pretty good. Sneaking the rest of the way, Peter peeks his head around the corner into the kitchen.

There’s a cake, sitting on the normal pedestal on the kitchen counter. What’s shocking to Peter is that he knows he wasn’t the one who made it. What’s also shocking, is that the person who made it is still there, finishing the icing.

“Bucky?”

The former Winter Soldier jolts backwards, panic on his face as he spins around to see who’s in the doorway. When he sees Peter, he relaxes slightly, but still has apprehension on his face.

“You made that?” Peter looks behind the man at the cake. The enhanced teenager sniffs a few more times. “It smells great.”

“Thanks,” the other enhanced in the room smiles bashfully. “Could you keep it a secret form everyone else, though? I kind of don’t want them to know I’ve been doing this.”

The teen frowns. “Have you done this a lot?”

“A few months now.”

That shocks Peter a bit. “Really?”

“Yeah. I’d just recently gotten back into it. I’ve mostly been coming up to the kitchen at night so nobody knew about it. Nobody, other than you apparently, comes here late at night, so I’ve gotten away with it for a while.”

“Gotten back into it? You mean you used to do it?”

Bucky takes a seat on one of the bar stools. He pats the one next to him, and Peter takes it.

“Back before Steve and I were enlisted,” he begins. “I used to bake all the time. When times got hard for so many other people, my family stayed pretty well off. Sugar was hard to come by, but I still made things for special occasions. Baking wasn’t something a man did back then, so I’d just keep it to myself. Only our maid knew what I was doing.” He laughs a bit. “On Steve’s birthday, I used to always make a cake. Strawberry cake, with vanilla frosting. His favorite. Told him the maid made it. I don’t think he’d ever figured out it was me. The way he would always just light up when I’d bring it into the small living area of his apartment.” A soft smile crosses his face, but it quickly turns to a frown. “Then, the war happened, and I never made it back. Those memories came back while I was in Wakanda, but they’d had people making food for us. When I came to the Compound, I just never got back into the habit.” He smiles at Peter. “But when you’d suddenly started baking, I just…” He sighs. “I just started getting that itch, you know. Where you just see the ingredients, and you can almost-.”

“Taste it,” Peter finishes for him. “Why don’t you want anyone else to know?”

“It’s kind of stupid,” he sighs again, this time a bit more depressing. “I’d just spent so long keeping it a secret, and my stuff is nothing compared to what you’ve made.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” the teen declares. He stalks over to the freshly baked cake and cuts himself a piece before taking a quick bite. After chewing a little, he sighs. “Mmm. This is delicious. Really. Do you put real strawberries in it?”

“Yeah,” Bucky chuckles. “Does it really taste good?”

“Yep. Just don’t let Ms. Potts try it, she’s allergic.”

“Got it, but it’s good?”

“Yes, Bucky,” Peter rolls his eyes. “It’s great. As a matter of fact-.”

Peter quickly finishes off his slice before cutting another.

“Hey!” The former Winter Soldier yelps. “Don’t eat all of it!”

“No promises,” the spiderling says around another bite of cake.

***

The following weekend, Peter comes into the Compound common area to see an interesting scene.

The dining room table is on its side, with Clint and Sam peeking out over it, both of them armed with fire extinguishers. They’re glaring at the kitchen, where Bucky has just slipped a cake pan into the oven.

“Hey, birdbrains,” Peter grins. “Where’s the fire?”

“It’ll more than likely be in the kitchen,” Clint frowns towards the mentioned room. “Seeing as Barnes seems to think he can bake.”

“Bucky can bake,” Peter chuckles. “His strawberry cake is delicious.” Peter sniffs the air. “And by the smell of the ingredients, that’s what he’s making.”

The two bird-based heroes drop their guards slightly, but the still look back and forth between the spiderling and the now occupied oven.

“Hey, idiots,” Bucky speaks up. “I’ve literally been doing this since before you were born. The most difficult thing was figuring out how to work the oven.”

Finally, after seeing the calm confidence of the two bakers, the pair of hiding superheroes leave their shelter. Clint still has his fire extinguisher, though.

“Once you clean up your mess, you can come wait for the cake to finish. Trust me, you’ll want a slice.”

***

Bucky finishes icing the cake as the three other people sit at on the bar stools in anticipation. It’s at that time that Steve Rogers walks into the kitchen. As the smell of the cake hits the supersoldier, he gapes at his friend.

“Buck, is that strawberry cake?”

“Yeah,” Barnes grins at Rogers. “Just like I made it back then.”

“Just like you used to…” Steve trails off as he processes what his best friend says.

“Anyway,” Clint cuts into the conversation. “The cakes done, so let’s all grab a slice.”

“Stevie gets his first,” Bucky tells them. “After that, you can have at it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There were a couple of people asking for some sort of Baker Bucky chapter. I just felt that this would be nice to put in.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	14. Tis the Season

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Food always tastes better with people you love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people wanted something family oriented and I agree.

Chapter 14: Tis the Season

It’s the holidays! Christmas Eve dinner, and Peter is, obviously, in the kitchen.

Expertly decorated cookies line his assigned place on the countertop. He’s got Christmas trees, snowmen, candy canes, and plenty of other designs. He’s got a few dreidels and menorahs, because even though he isn’t really practicing, the Parkers are Jewish, and Peter will not forget his family’s heritage. He also left a few blank, round ones for the people who aren’t that big a fan of frosting.

Bucky’s got an intricate gingerbread house that he is in the process of frosting. He’s bribed Natasha and Wanda with the various sweets he’s using to decorate the construction. Their job is to guard the delicious architecture from Clint, and maybe Sam and Steve.

Tony, for his part, was the biggest surprise of all. He actually kicked Pepper out of the kitchen, something he wouldn’t dare do usually. This was the exception, though, because of what’s on the menu for today.

“Nope,” he shoos her away from the boiling pot. “If anyone’s making the pasta, it’s going to be me.”

He apparently learned different dishes from his mother, and although he isn’t the best at any other type of cooking, his wife says he burns pretty much anything else, he’s an expert at almost anything Italian in origin. Pepper just let out an amused sigh and went to prepare the salad.

Rhodey had the ham covered, he and Tony swear by Mama Rhodes’ cooking process, while Laura and Lila Barton help with the mashed potatoes and gravy. Bruce prepares a couple of dishes that he’d learned while in his hermit periods, a little spicy, but good for anyone without enhanced taste buds.

May arrives from her shift a bit later with Happy. She immediately goes over to Tony while he’s making the pasta and starts debating with him. Arguing, more like. It gets a bit heated, both of them switching back and forth between Italian and English. Like Mr. Stark, the only dishes Aunt May can make are Italian and a few simple baked goods she learned from Peter and Ben. It’s pretty entertaining to watch, but it’s finally settled when Pepper suggests that Tony make the pasta, while May makes the sauce. After that, there’s only an occasional smattering of jabs about taste or heating between the two of them.

***

Everyone is seated around the table, with the war for the food well on its way. Multiple enhanced metabolisms and teenage appetites come into play as food is piled high onto plates. When the people with actual sense start setting ground rules for the amount of food allowed to be on said plates, it becomes a race to clean off their dishes and snag some of the good stuff before the others get to it.

Finally, the plates on the table are clear, with no leftovers in sight, and everyone sighs in contentment.

“Well,” Pepper brings everyone’s attention to her. “Why don’t we snack on dessert while we enjoy the rest of the day. Remember, though, the gingerbread house is for tomorrow.” She gives a look to some of the troublemakers around the room. “But the cookies are up for grabs.”

Everyone takes at least three each, mainly because if they waited for later, they’d all be gone. Then, everyone branches off to do their own thing. Most of them go to the various forms of entertainment laid out for everyone. TV, video games, card games, and even just sitting around and chatting with each other. The Christmas tree is decorated, and there are presents underneath, but those are for tomorrow morning, before everyone has to go to their other festivities. Tonight, it’s about relaxation, friends, family, and food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, my family is pretty spread out. We also have plenty of extended family and in-laws that we have to go around and see during the holidays. It's why we usual set aside Christmas Eve for the big feast instead of the day itself, and just have Christmas morning focused on the presents and the joy from them before everyone who needs to can leave. Thought it would be pretty fitting, seeing as plenty of the Avengers and Avenger adjacents probably have their own families to see as well.
> 
> Also, I'd read somewhere that Peter was Jewish canonically. Thought it would be nice to put a little reference to that in there, even if it's only a small one.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	15. Trading Talents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Compound gains a new long-term tenant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Introducing a character that should've been in sooner.

Chapter 15: Trading Talents

“Peter! I want to introduce you to someone!”

Looking up from where he’s seated in the lab, Peter sees Mr. Stark at the door, with someone standing next to him. A boy, about Peter’s age.

“This is Harley Keener,” Mr. Stark introduces. “He’s going to be staying at the Compound for the rest of his high school career. He’ll also be going to Midtown, so I thought you might be able to show him around.”

***

Peter thought that Harley would be annoying. That he’d end up taking over Peter’s life and taking Mr. Stark’s attention away from him.

Those thoughts didn’t even last an hour.

It was a bond made through engineering and love of sci-fi. Apparently, Harley grew up in a small town in Tennessee. Not very many people liked science there, so he didn’t have very many people to talk to about things like that. Sure, plenty of people liked cars, but that was the extent of their engineering interest. After they’d finished in the lab, the both of them went to the commons area and Peter showed him the different movies and streaming services they have available. They now have plans to watch all of their favorites while Harley’s here, and Peter promised to introduce him to Ned so that they could watch together.

When the tour was done, and Harley was settled into his room, the pair goes back down to the lab. Harley has flashdrives and notebooks full of ideas, and although he might have a pretty good lab at home because of Mr. Stark, he is severely lacking in resources for a lot of projects in Tennessee.

***

Ned, Harley, and Peter became a trio of nerds as soon as the guy hit Midtown. Keener’s polite attitude towards the teachers caused him to “sir” and “ma’am” his way into each of their hearts. That, along with his genius level intelligence, quickly caused him to fit right in at the STEM school despite coming in middle of the year.

Flash was a little annoyed when Keener joined decathlon, which caused Eugene to quickly be bumped down to alternate again, but the country boy was enthusiastic in learning about the different superheroes and vigilantes in the city. Flash was happy to share his expertise.

By the end of the week, Ned, Harley, and Peter become what MJ calls a “three-way bromance.”

Harley is now one of Peter’s best friends. They have so much in common. The lab, the videos, and even at school.

He found out pretty quickly that Peter was Spider-man. It was sort of easy to put the pieces together when Peter works on Spider-man tech all the time at the Compound. He wasn’t actually trying to hide it from the guy, anyways. Mr. Stark trusts him, so Peter does. He even helped make some improvements on the Iron Spider armor.

One thing he never expected from Harley was to see him in the kitchen, preparing dinner for everyone.

“Ma worked three jobs to support me and Sis,” he tells Peter. “We’d go to the diner she worked at for breakfast, and lunch was at school, but I’d always cook dinner for Abbie and me.” He smiles as he stirs the vegetables in the pan. “Wanted to start giving her somethin’ other than mac and cheese. Lots ‘a farms give us a discount on meats and veggies, and the store has a lot of stuff, too. Started lookin’ up recipes I could make, and just started cookin’.”

Peter noticed that his accent slips out when he talks about his family, but it’s nice that there’s something else they had in common. Making food for the people they cared about.

***

Since then, they traded. Peter would teach him how to bake, and Harley would teach how to cook. Both of them picked it up really quick, and they enjoyed experimenting. Neither gets as good as the other at their specialty, but it’s a close thing. Eventually, they were not only the main bakers, but also the main cooks for the Compound.

“You should open up a restaurant,” Clint sighs, patting his stomach as he finishes off his meal.

“Please don’t,” Nat says in response, taking another bite of her food. “If you do that, we might have to pay for it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized that I haven't really been including Harley Keener in a lot of my fics, even though his friendship with Peter happens to be one of my favorite tropes. If you've got anyone else you want me to introduce, let me know.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	16. Interrogation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's more than one way to make someone talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING, ANGST AHEAD!!! DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO!!!
> 
> This was inspired by a suggestion from frozenchaos9.
> 
> I want to warn you that it's a bit darker than most of the other chapters. Not really very light-hearted. Made me tear up a bit when I was writing it.
> 
> Also, do not try this at home.

Chapter 16: Interrogation

Peter hates this. This sitting around. This waiting. All while the man on the other side of the one-way glass just sits there, calmly in his seat.  
How could that monster support something like this?! He’s enhanced himself! And he’s not just supporting, but defending a bunch of enhanced child traffickers.  
Peter turns on his heel and stomps out of the room.

***

“He’s not susceptible to torture,” Natasha reports in the conference room. “And his enhancements make it so that drugs, including any sort of truth serum or something similar, are useless on him.”

“We have to find some way to get him to talk,” Clint growls. “We’ve got everyone else looking, but he’s probably our best source.”

Peter is sitting there, reading through the profile they’ve found on the man for the seventh time. Murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, and so many other crimes that he’s been charged for. Life sentence, at the very least, in a cold dark cell that won’t ever see the light of day. The man is, by all intents and purposes, hardly even a person. And yet, Peter hesitates. He doesn’t know if it’ll do anything, but he has a plan that might work. Still, he’s hesitates.

“Give me an hour.”

Everyone turns to the teen, as he stands up in his chair.

“Kid,” Tony frowns, concern etched on his face. “What-?”

“Just,” Peter interrupts his mentor. “Give me one hour to prepare everything. I have an idea, and I need to do it before I change my mind.”

***

As Peter walks into the door, the man chained to the table snorts.

“What?” The man mocks. “Get lost on the way to the little boy’s room?”

With all of the calm he’s been able to gather, he holds out a vial.

“You’re going to drink this,” Peter glares. “And then, you’re going to tell the people who come in everything that you know.”

“Really?” He laughs. “What, you fashion together a little truth serum with your chemistry set?”

Peter just keeps his impassive face as he holds the liquid out. Eventually, the child trafficker just settles down. Still smiling, he answers.

“You know what,” he chuckles. “I’ll humor you. Pour it in.”

He opens his mouth, and let’s Peter pour the vial into his mouth. Peter then walks out of the room without another word.

Once the door is closed, Peter sees the assembled group. Each and every Avenger currently in the Compound is looking at him in curiosity and concern.

“Here,” he holds out another vial. “Have him hold this liquid in his mouth for ten seconds and swallow it when he’s ready to talk.”

With that, Peter walks down the hall, not looking back.

***

Nat takes a seat on the couch next to her Little Spider. Peter’s curled up in on himself, eyes staring straight forward.

“He talked,” she tells the kid.

“Good.”

There’s a few more moments of silence, before Nat speaks again.

“If you don’t want to tell me, you don’t have to, but I’m curious.”

Peter’s lips purse in frustration, and anxiety. Then, he opens his mouth again.

“I’ve been doing research,” he starts. “Into the science behind taste. You know the different chemical reaction that trigger when your tasting things. I’ve been using chemistry to try to isolate and duplicate various singular reactions. The vial I had him drink triggered the receptors on his tongue that give you the feeling you get from the capsaicin in spicy food, only concentrated to the point where the hottest pepper in the world couldn’t reach even close to it. Add on the enhanced senses his file says he has, and he couldn’t have been having a good time in there.”

Natasha knows her Little Spider better than anyone in the Compound, with the exception of Tony. She knows how hard it must’ve been for him to use his research like that. It’s why, when she wraps him in a hug, she doesn’t even flinch when she feels a wetness coming from the kid’s eyes, nor does she do anything other than squeeze tighter when his shoulders start to shake from the sobs.

“C-Can I go b-bake a c-cake?”

“Of course,” she rubs his back. “Can I help?”

He nods into her shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, a bit darker.
> 
> It was brought about by some stuff I've seen online and in my own personal readings. Not sure if it would actually work in real life, and I'm not very keen to even attempt it.
> 
> Anyways...
> 
> Comments and Kudos. I will accept a degree of meanness for this chapter. I probably deserve it.


	17. Wakanda Nonsense is This?

Chapter 17: Wakanda Nonsense is This?

It all began with a diplomatic and scientifically advanced plane landing at the Compound. Steve, Tony, and Nat are standing there to greet the guests, while Peter and Harley peek through the door to the Compound.

“Your Pantherness,” Tony nods at T’Challa as he walks down the ramp of the jet with another person and his small retinue of guards.

“Your Highness,” Steve gives a more formal greeting.

“Hello, friends,” the Wakandan ruler smiles at the assembled trio. “It’s good to see you again. I hope you don’t mind, but I brought someone with me this visit. My sister,” he places a hand on her shoulder. "Shuri,” he places a hand on her shoulder. “Is the head of our nation’s science division. Our mother thought that this would be a good opportunity for her to experience outside of Wakanda. I was hoping I could have your permission for her to stay for a time after I leave, with a few guards. I feel as if your facility is secure enough for her while she is staying here.”

“Of course,” Tony smiles. “One more teen at the Compound won’t make too much of a difference.”

***

It did. It did make a difference.

Peter and Harley were already a handful. Harley only really calms down slightly when Peter is away, when they’re working on a difficult project, or they’re in the kitchen. Even when Peter has MJ over, it only makes it less of a chaotic mess and more an organized assault on the adults’ sanity. He’s pretty distracted by her, but she doesn’t really stop him from making trouble, just keeps him from doing anything too stupid that could cause him to hurt himself.

The Avengers thought that adding another girl, and one who is royalty at that, would act as a constant calming agent for Harley, and maybe Peter, while she is here.

Honestly, they should’ve known better.

It took about a week for Shuri to get used to the technology that is at the Compound and in the city. Apparently, it’s a little “primitive” for her tastes, but she does admit that the stuff Stark has is decades ahead of anywhere else outside of Wakanda. After that initial adjustment period, however, she became a third thorn in their side.

Her guards are only there to keep her from hurting herself, and to keep her safe while she explores the city. They are not, however, there to keep her from taking Steve’s shield and trapping it in Jell-O. Kind of understandable. “A waste of perfectly good vibranium,” she called it. However, when she and Harley took a quick expanding, pressure activated foam and put it in the training mats, that was when they got a look at what the princess was really like. It flooded the entirety of floor of the gym when Nat slammed Clint on the mat during a grappling exercise.

In retrospect, it’s not really that bad. Just another addition to the funhouse. She plays video games, does the normal tourist thing around New York, makes friends with MJ and Ned, and even helps out in the lab. Her guards have been taking pictures, that are probably much better quality than anything a normal camera can take, and have been sending them back to Wakanda. Partially as a status update, and partially to show her mother and brother that she’s having a good time in the States.

Still, despite all of her time spent with the other teens, there’s still one place she doesn’t really enter too often.

***

“Are you done yet?” Shuri sighs.

She’s laying down on the couch, head hanging off upside down as she looks into the kitchen.

“You know,” Harley chuckles back at her, while mixing a bowl of batter. “You could always join me.”

“Nope,” she pops. “Mom’s been doing everything she can to get me into the kitchen. Why do I even need to learn to cook? I get all of my meals made for me.”

“C’mon,” he urges a bit more. “You’d enjoy it.”

“Really?” She chuckles. “I’ve heard that before. ‘It’s artistic.’ ‘You need to do something other than science.’ ‘Stop getting so caught up in your work.’” She gives him a look. “Sound anything like what you’re going to try to convince me with?”

“Nope. It’s actually the exact opposite. I was going to say how much science is actually in the kitchen.”

“Nutrition, medical, and biological,” she waves him off. “Already heard it before.”

“Actually, I was thinking about the chemistry,” Harley clarifies. “It might not be as prevalent in a lot of cooking, but it’s there in some of the simplest dishes for baking. It’s what got Peter into it.”

That catches her interest. She sits up on the couch.

“Chemistry? How so?”

Harley smiles. “Why don’t you put on an apron and I’ll show you.”

***

“Mother. Ayo has sent another update. I think you’ll want to see this.”

Ramonda looks up at her son. There’s been regular photos and reports from the guards assigned to her daughter. Due to Shuri’s standing, anyone her age or younger than her have usually kept their distance. As such, she’s only really been around her brother and adults during her childhood. T’Challa managed to gain friends during his studies abroad, but Shuri was never old enough to go to college at a reasonable age before Wakanda came out of the shadows. It’s been a joy to see her bond with people her own age group.

The smirk on her son’s face shows that this particular report is a good one. Not like the exasperated look when the guards sent an aerial photo of a large room full of foam. T’Challa pulls up a hologram, displaying a sight brings a smile to her face and tears start to bead up in her eyes.

Shuri, lips pursed in concentration and eyes focused in a way she only sees when the girl is working in the lab, is icing a one of three cakes on a table in the kitchen of the Compound. Standing next to her is the boy, Harley, mouth open slightly and eyes equally focused as he no doubt instructs her on the icing. Underneath the photo is a caption.

_She made it herself._


	18. I'm Too Hot...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not letting it end with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit of redemption for my angst chapter a few chapters back.
> 
> frozenchaos9, thank you again for the original.
> 
> JoFlemJr, I got this idea from your comment.
> 
> Dillonluck5, although I did learn this fact in my own personal research, you probably still know more about that type of stuff than me, and I appreciate the comment.

Chapter 18: I’m Too Hot…

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Boys and Girls! Welcome back to the National Pepper Eating Championships!”

There are cheers from the audience as the announcer walks along the stage. Seated at a table, facing the audience, are the three finalists.

“We have three wonderful contestants that have braved through every round of this competition- even taking down the Carolina Reaper! The hottest pepper in the world!” There are more cheers in the crowd, and the announcer waits for everything to calm down a little before continuing. “Now, we actually have something different for our Sudden Death Round today. Something that, in my honest belief, will become a regular occurrence at our competition. Please, bring out the vials!”

With that, the assistants that had been helping out for the entire competition bring out three separate cases. They open them up in front of each contestant and set down a vial and a large beaker, painted different colors, in front of the competitors.

“Don’t be fooled by their appearance,” the announcer chuckles ominously. “Just like a pepper, these small vials contain a liquid of great potency. But I won’t be the one to explain this to you. Instead, please welcome, chemistry prodigy and the youngest intern of the famed Stark Industries, Peter Parker!”

There’s more applause as a baby-faced and blushing teenager steps on the stage, he grins at the crowd as he scratches the back of his head in embarrassment.

“Mr. Parker, why don’t you tell us what you’ve brought for our contestants today and how it came about.”

Peter takes the mic and clears his throat. “Well, I really like baking and cooking, and the science behind it, so I started to try to concentrate the different tastes and chemical reactions that cause you to feel different sensations when you eat or drink something. I- well I’d managed to create something that I thought was pretty bad, but one of my friends gave me this idea. Which is why, after perfecting it, I brought it here. What I did was I managed to isolate the chemicals that are in peppers and other spicy foods, and enhance them and their ability to cause reactions from the receptors they trigger on your tongue. After that, I took that same process, and gave that treatment to that cooling feeling you get when you eat mint. Then, I combined them together to make the hot feeling feel even worse.” Peter’s smile widens. “My explanation might be boring to most of you, but what you all need to know is those little red vials in front of the contestants are scientifically proven to be the spiciest thing they will ever ingest in their lives. That is, until I find a way to improve it.”

The entirety of the audience roars in excitement at the end of the kid’s explanation. There are cheers and whistles and laughter abound. The contestants look at the small thing in front of them with caution, and a bit of fear.

Peter gives the microphone back to the announcer. “Now that we know what our finalists are up against, you’ll understand why the object of the next game isn’t who can eat it the fastest, it’s who can hold out the longest. The three of them will drink the red vial, and whoever can hold out the longest without it being hazardous to your health will be declared the winner. Like always, we have medical professionals standing by, but the best solution is actually the larger container of liquid beside the vial. If it gets too much for you, drink the beaker and the heat will all but vanish within ten seconds. Now then, are the contestants ready?” All three of them nod, still nervous. “Then, one, two, three, DRINK!”

***

Peter hugs Nat when they get back to the quinjet.

“Seems like they enjoyed themselves,” she tells him, returning the hug.

“Thank you for giving me the idea,” his voice trembles a bit. “They- I just didn’t want to have something I made be only for making people feel pain.”

“Anytime, Little Spider,” she brushes his hair. “Anytime.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I also didn't want that to end with just something a bit depressing.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	19. The Great Avenger's Bake Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Read the chapter title

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've finally been struck by inspiration for this chapter!!!!
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has requested this throughout the fic. I hope you like how I wrote it.

Chapter 19: Great Avenger’s Bake Off

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Today, we are in for a treat. Here, on the official Avengers Compound blog, we are going to see the very first Compound Bake-off!”

Clint Barton is holding a mic, while AI controlled cameras keep him in focus. Behind him, Tony specifically outfitted one of the buildings on the Compound for this moment. Multiple identical kitchens have been interspersed throughout the fully decorated large room. On the back wall is a collection of shelving full of dry ingredients, with an insulated door that leads to a fridge and freezer.

“Now,” Clint continues on. “Let’s introduce our contestants on this particular competition. First, we have our Small-town hero. The Country Cooking Connoisseur. Bucking Baking Bronco. The Engineer of Edibles. Harley Keener!”

There’s studio applause in the background, but the people watching can also hear a smattering of real clapping behind the camera, as a tall, and well-built, boy walks into view, waving at the camera.

“Next, we have another young resident of our Compound. She is the Goddess of Goodies. The Bast of Baking. The Panther Princess of Pastries. Please put your hands together for Shuri of Wakanda!”

Shuri raises both hands in a wave as she walks into view. She’s a lot less reserved than Keener is. When she reaches the other teen, she gives him a fist bump.

“Now, for our third contestant. The Soldier of Sweets, James “Bucky” Barnes!”

The man walks out with the applause, but he shoots a look at Clint.

“Why was my introduction shorter than the other two?”

Hawkeye doesn’t acknowledge the man or his question.

“Finally,” the completely and totally unbiased announcer continues. “We have the last participant in our competition. He’s the Confectionary Chemist. The Sugar Superman. The Deity of Delicious Dishes. Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s Peter Parker!”

Peter has on an embarrassed smile, with his cheeks tinged with a bit of color as he walks out to the rest of the participants. He does a special handshake with Harley, and fist bumps Shuri, while Bucky ruffles his hair.

“Next, let’s introduce our judges. First is Tony Stark. He’s a well-known billionaire, and despite his usual diet consisting of cheap, quick meals and coffee, he has a great palette when it comes to food. He’s also one the one paying for all of this, so we sort of had to include him.”

There’s canned applause as he waves at the camera.

“And an uncommon, but not entirely unwelcome sight. Another man who used to navigate the upper-class circles, but now has decided to defend the world from mystical threats and pulls rabbits out of hats. His snooty attitude is as picky as his taste in food. The Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Stephen Strange!”

Said sorcerer sends Clint a scathing glare before smiling at the camera.

“Finally, we have the only judge with an actual baking background. As such, he deserves all the praise we can give him. Please welcome, the head baker of the Manhattan Cakes baking kitchen, the man who was in charge of the Stark Wedding, Oliver Norson!”

“Now that they’ve all been introduced,” the camera moves back to Clint. “It’s time to tell you the particulars of the competition. There will be a total of three different rounds. In each round, our bakers will have to prepare a specific sweet for the judges. The judges will then judge them on taste and cleanliness of presentation. After the judging, a single contestant will be eliminated. The last person standing will be declared… The Avengers Compound’s Baking Extraordinaire!”

***

The first round was cookies.

It was a pretty close thing, but the one who lost was Shuri.

There was nothing wrong with her plan, but she’s still the newest when it comes to baking. She’s not used to baking within a time limit. As such, she took too much time to finish and was disqualified. They did, however, allow her to finish and each of the judges really liked her creations.

Harley lost in the next round with cupcakes. It was more of a personal preference than anything else. Harley doesn’t like a lot of frosting on his cupcakes, so he didn’t put enough on for the judges.

Finally, it’s the cake round. With Bucky and Peter both having their own fully decorated cakes tasted by the judges. After some time to discuss, they make their deliberation.

“To be completely honest,” Oliver Norson smiles at both of them. “Taste was pretty much a tie; it really came down to the decorating. I’m sorry Mr. Barnes, but Peter’s icing was neater than yours.”

Bucky gives a shrug. “Yeah, he’s got a lot of experience with baking in a time crunch from working at an actual bakery.” He pats the kid next to him on the shoulder. “Good job, kid.”

Clint steps in front of the camera. “And with that, I can declare that the victor and officially best baker in the Avengers Compound is Peter Parker!” Then, dropping all pretenses of maturity, he looks over at the judges’ table. “Now, let’s get us some cake.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clint (and by Clint I mean me) had a lot of fun thinking up those different titles for the introduction.
> 
> Peter is technically the most experienced baker amongst them, in terms of variety and being able to bake in high stress situations.
> 
> Anyways. Hope you liked it.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	20. It's for Real This Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We have a situation. Well, we had a situation. Now, it's turned into less of a situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was reading through the comments on some of the previous chapters of the fic, because I do that when I need a pick me up, and I thought of a fun little chapter.
> 
> This one was brought to you by JaDePeacock, frozenchaos9, and a fun little thing I saw online.
> 
> Enjoy!

Chapter 20: It’s for Real This Time

Every single resource of Stark Industries, the Avengers, and the Nation of Wakanda that can possibly be redirected to this have been. They need to find them, and when they do, the people who took the kids are going to have the worst day of their lives.

“Anything FRI?” Tony doesn’t take his eyes off of the screen in front of him.

“The van that took them hasn’t left the city,” she reports. “And I have managed to narrow its possible location down to a small portion of the city.”

“And the Avengers and my guards are searching that area,” Shuri purses her lips in concern. “We will find them.”

“Thanks for letting us use them, Shuri,” Tony gives a grateful look to the princess.

“They jumped at the chance to help, Stark,” she gives a small chuckle. “Apparently, they enjoy talking with Harley in the morning when I’m still asleep, and they think both of the boys are a good influence on me.”

“We’ll find them, Tony,” Pepper rubs his back.

“And when we do…”

Behind the two geniuses tracking are the people not a part of the search. Any one of them would’ve gone out to help, but they needed them to stay so that it doesn’t grab anyone’s attention and in case the kidnapping is just a diversion. Still, Clint’s testing his bowstring. Rhodey’s already got his suit at the ready and just has to get in. Bucky has just menacingly racked a shotgun shell. Loki, who has been left here by his brother for a few days while he sorts something out off-world, is flipping and catching a knife in his hand. He’s not even allowed to go, but he’s hoping that this is a distraction so that the people who kidnapped Peter will try to attack.

Tony is so tightly wound that, when the phone next to him rings, he jumps a bit. He answers it, cautiously, putting it on speaker.

“We have your kids-.”

“And,” he growls. “If they have a scratch on them, you’ll be in for a world of hurt.”

“Woah, woah, slow down. Let me finish, we have your kids, and we’d like you to come pick them up, or we could drop them off at the Compound, if you want.”

“Hey, Mr. Stark,” an excited Peter sounding voice calls from the background. “Me and Harley are fine.”

Tony, as well as every other person in the room, are in various stages of shock.

“So,” the apparent kidnapper chuckles. “Where do you want to meet?”

“You could just give us the address,” Tony responds to the man. “We should have people near where you are.”

“Cool,” the guy rattles off an address that is literally two blocks away from their search party’s current position. “I’ll see you soon.”

***

Every member of the search party knows it’s obviously a trap. The kidnappers are literally telling them the location of their base. There’s no way that they’re actually there. Still, they have to check the place. It might even have a clue to where the people are.

It’s those thoughts, the paranoia that each person in the group has, that causes the complete shock that shows on Natasha Romanov’s face when she looks in the window of the apartment building that the kidnappers told them is completely understandable.

Peter and Harley are in the kitchen, with a single adult watching them closely. The rest are seated at the large table with plates of food in front of them. Natasha squints in suspicion, knocking on the window. Everyone inside jumps a bit, but Peter’s grin widens as he rushes over to open the window for her.

“Nat! Come on in! Dessert’s almost ready!”

The Black Widow takes a few moments to process what’s happening in front of her. Either way, she brings her hand up to the com in her ear.

“Guys, come on up. Everything’s safe, the boys are here, and there’s even food.”

“What?” She hears Sam on the other end.

“Just come up and see.”

***

“Turns out, Peter and Harley are both people persons.”

“We know that already,” Tony sighs into the phone. “But could you explain why the hell the kidnappers decided to have a giant dinner party instead of holding them hostage.”

“They challenged our honor, Mr. Stark,” Peter sounds through the speaker phone.

“They were feeding us,” Harley starts to explain in more detail. “And the food wasn’t that great, and we told them such. Apparently, we complained a bit too much. They dared us to do better-.”

“Challenging our honor,” Peter repeats.

“And,” Harley keeps going. “They apparently liked what we made. One of the guys asked for the recipe, and they all wanted to have us make more, so we just decided to make a full-course meal for them with the stuff they’ve brought. Eventually, the guys just changed their minds about the kidnapping.”

“I’m going to culinary school,” an unfamiliar male voice sounds in the background.

“Okay,” Tony sighs. “Just, get home quick, everyone’s worried about you.”

“We’ll have to wait for a bit,” Peter tells him. “The ganache cake is almost done.”

Clint Barton, whose caution is pretty much gone and bow is now stowed.

“Oh, oh,” he talks into the phone. “Can you bring me back a slice.”

“Sorry, dude,” Harley chuckles. “Only enough for everyone here.”

“But I’ll make another one when we get back,” Peter assures the archer.

“Yes!” Clint pumps his fist.

“Fine,” Tony pinches his nose in frustration. “Get back as soon as all of the food is done. Also, get the IDs of all of the guys involved in this. I’m not going to charge them with anything, but they’re on thin ice.”

“I understand, Mr. Iron-man, sir,” one of the men calls. “Thank you.”

Tony hangs up. Leaning back in his seat, he wipes his hand over his face.

“At least they’re alright,” Pepper wraps her arms around him.

“Yeah,” he leans into her. Then, he turns to glance at Clint. “Barton, you know you’re not getting all of that cake, right?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm curious about something. What would the people on here think about a Shuri/Harley pairing for this fic? It just came to me. Do you think it would be a good development?
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	21. Keeping an Eye on Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Celebrate! Whether you want to or not!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idea inspired by frozenchaos9. Enjoy!

Chapter 21: Keeping an Eye on Things

Natasha walks into the kitchen, her calm steps barely making a sound on the floor. Seeing the two people she’s looking for; she sits down on one of the barstools.

“Boys,” she addresses Peter and Harley. “I have a mission for you.”

The both turn to her at that. She doesn’t use that word lightly. A mission is something of great importance. On occasion, it’s helping her scout out a human trafficking ring. Harley, seeing as his suit isn’t stealthy and is also still in the testing phase, works the coms and cameras. Other times, she is caught in the middle of a prank. Sometimes they’re directed at her, but more often than not she’s just collateral. Doesn’t stop her from pranking everyone involved for revenge.

More likely, though, this has something to do with food. Sometimes she’s craving something specific. Either he favorite dessert, or a dish that she had in another country. She spots something in a bakery window, or brought a weird food from the market that the boys are more than happy to experiment with.

When Nat gives them the details of today’s mission, both of the boys gape, before smiles spread to both of their faces. It’s a baking mission, and oh my god, is it a good one.

“Oh,” Peter chuckles. “We are so doing this.”

“You can count on us,” Harley nods.

***

“Is it really today?”

“It’s the day he celebrates it on.”

“Does he celebrate?”

“No, but we’re going to fix that.”

“I’m game. Even if he doesn’t like it, it’s always fun to tick him off.”

“Shhh, Shhh, he’s coming.”

It’s a sound that only the enhanced can here, because he’s only heard when he wants to be, but the footsteps continue to draw closer. That is until…

“Alright, Romanov,” Nick Fury turns the corner into the room. “What did you-?”

The former Director of SHIELD stops his question. In front of him is a collection of superheroes and their companions. The common area is decorated with all manner of streamers, balloons, and a large banner behind everyone.

“Happy Birthday!” The entire procession cheers.

He turns and focuses on Natasha Romanov, the Black Widow, and raises an eyebrow.

“Did you really pull me away from my important business for this?”

“Please,” she rolls her eyes. “You and I both know that you had nothing going on, and Maria agreed to cover anything that might come up today. You do trust her, right?”

“Oh course, she’s in on it,” he sighs.

“C’mon, Nick,” Tony grins at the man. “Let loose, it’s your birthday. Beats sitting in whatever hideout you’ve holed yourself up in brooding all day.”

“We even have presents!” Lila Barton points to the table with a few wrapped gifts and envelopes.

***

They did have presents. It’s hard to get something for one of the most private people in existence, but they managed.

Tony gave him a few pieces of spy tech that he’d created.

“Gave you five of each,” he tells him. “So, your little techies can try and reverse engineer them. I would recommend keeping a couple intact, though. I’m not giving you anymore.”

Clint and Nat gave him weapons, and a couple of pieces of intel on some leads they’ve been pursuing. They were going to give the intel anyways, but they put a little bow on the manila folder.

The only people so far that were granted a favorable response were the Barton kids. Most of the other Avengers made cards, but the kids’ card was given a nod of approval.

“Well made,” he tells them. “And I appreciate the lack of glitter.”

After all of the gifts have been unwrapped and sorted through, and all of the wrapping paper has been removed, there’s movement from the kitchen.

Harley and Peter carry out a layered purple and silver iced birthday cake with the SHIELD logo decorated on top. As a little joke, you can see that the eagle on the emblem has a little eyepatch on it.

Everyone sings, while Fury just stares at the cake. Everyone understands that, because nobody actually knows what to do when you’re the person being sung to. Finally, however, the song ends.

“Thank you for not putting candles in,” he comments.

There’s a pause, before he picks up the knife and cuts himself a slice. He takes a bite of it, savoring the taste before swallowing.

“It’s passable.”

“That means delicious in Fury speak,” Clint whispers to the two teens.

They both already understood that, and they’re grinning widely as the man takes another bite. Laura Barton then starts cutting the rest of cake for the kids. Then, the adults dig in.

Obviously, everyone enjoys the dessert, but only a few people actually see the small smirk that appears on Nick Fury’s face for a second, before it disappears for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The stoic Fury melts slightly.
> 
> Thank you again for the comments and suggestions. I've got a few more I'm in the process of making, but they should be posted soon.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	22. Edible Engineering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The teens branch out. New possibilities emerge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought about this, and decided to write it.
> 
> Enjoy!

Chapter 22: Edible Engineering

Peter and Harley are just lying there, watching the sweet decorating show Candyland. It’s the final episode, and they really enjoyed it, but both of them are now thinking about something.

They’ll always enjoy baking and cooking. It’s something that they can do to bring smiles to the people around them, and it’s really fun to see how far they can go with their experimentation. Still, even with all of that, and the knowledge that they’ve only scratched the surface of cooking and baking, there’s still an itch to do more. They’re staring at the final round of this really fun show, and they turn to each other.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Harley smirks.

Peter looks up at the ceiling. “FRIDAY, do you think you could order some equipment for us?”

“Of course, Peter,” her voice responds. “What would you like?”

Two matching grins spread across the teens’ faces as they start rattling of equipment and ingredients. They pull up things on their laptop, looking for anything they might need and missed, as well as researching the process and science behind their next endeavor.

“Coordinate with Karen to have all of it delivered to our culinary lab, please,” Harley declares.

“Of course, Harley.”

***

The Avengers are nervous. It takes a lot for that to happen.

Sure, at any one time, you’ll find the heroes dealing with various anxieties. A peaceful spell in missions will lead to some of the more paranoid of the group thinking that it’s just the calm before the storm. On occasion, you’ll have Tony stressing about some annoying deal potentially falling through. Not necessarily that it will fall through, but because of the stress it’ll cause Pepper due to the board’s complaints. Clint sometimes has a bad case of homesickness, which is why he has his own smaller quinjet to visit his family. Bruce is doing pretty well lately, due to coming to an agreement with the Not-So-Jolly Green Giant, but he still gets the occasional spike of anxiety when things get too stressful.  
Every other member of the team also has their own little quirks and things that’ll set them off. However, there’s hardly ever been a point where all of them have a perpetually underlying anxiety for a consistently long time. That’s only present during Avengers level threats or long-term missions, or when they have to deal with the politics and press after those events. Now, though, each and every one of them have been getting more and more on edge these past couple of weeks.

Why? Because of Peter and Harley.

They’ve been pretty much locked up in their private lab for the last few weeks. They come out to eat, sleep, and do homework. Other than that, if they’re at the Compound, they’re in that lab.

In the beginning, everyone was excited. Tony and Bruce had found out that they were in the isolated culinary section of their shared lab, and that the two of them had ordered a bunch of parts and ingredients from FRIDAY. It’s basically a scientific kitchen, where Peter started experimenting with taste and Harley joined in shortly after. When they’re in there, it usually means the two of them started experimenting with some dish or flavoring. Everyone was looking forward to seeing what they’d come up with, because when they come out, it’s always impressive.

The problem is that they still hadn’t revealed anything by the end of the week. When that happened, it set a few of the people on edge. By the end of the second week, everyone else started to get nervous. When the third week came around, that’s when the dread set in.

You see, Peter and Harley haven’t just become known throughout the Compound for how good things taste, but also how bad. They were bored one day, and decided to try to create a spontaneously terrible edible thing. One that nobody would be able to stand eating. Something that probably qualified as just under a biological weapon in terms of taste. It didn’t even have a name. No actual food was put into it. It was made in the lab, but it was edible in almost every sense of the word except taste.

Then, it began. When they would spend more than a week in the food lab, something amazing would appear afterwards. A lot of times, it would be delectable; but everyone has endured Peter’s extreme sour balls, and Harley had managed to create delayed reactions from people’s taste buds so that they wouldn’t think to spit out the food until it was already travelling through the intestines. Seriously, those two were a force to be reckoned with when they only have two weeks. Now, they’re passing their third, and they won’t reveal what they’re doing.

Yeah, the Avengers are nervous.

Finally, a few days before they hit the month mark, they finally emerge.

“Hey, guys.”

Clint almost jumps out of his skin. Everyone else in the common area turns to the teens in the doorway.

“Hey, you two,” Tony smiles. “What’s up?”

“Well,” Harley scratches the back of his head. “We’ve been working on something in our lab for a while.”

“We’ve noticed,” Bucky jokes.

“Yeah,” Peter chuckles. “Well, we’ve finished the first part of the experimentation, and we want you to come check it out.”

“I’m game,” Sam stand up, stretching. “You’ve had us all curious for almost a month. I’d like to at least sate that curiosity.”

Even with that, a few of them are still on guard. They wouldn’t put it past the two of them to prank them in the lab.

The teens enter their lab, and the Avengers see the normal mess of unfinished projects and writings on whiteboards from in their regular lab. Bruce and Tony almost stop a couple of times to try to check out those, but the team just drags the older geniuses on. Keep your eyes on the prize. And, when the doors to the food lab open, those geniuses are thankful that they kept going.

Inside of the lab, the first thing they notice is the slight drop in temperature. It’s a bit colder than usual. The second thing causes them to gape at the sight. It almost looks like an art museum. Gleaming designs and decorations. Three dimensional plants, animals, jewels, and various tools. That even includes-.

“Is that my shield?” Steve sees a familiar looking round object.

Sure enough, the red, white, and blue pattern is almost a perfect replica to the man’s weapon of choice. The only difference between the two is that instead of the sheen of painted metal-.

“Is this glass?” Nat voices a few of their thoughts as she looks at a small, delicate looking rose.

“Sugar, actually,” Peter grins.

“We’ve decided to get into sugar sculpting,” Harley explains. “It seemed really cool, and we had FRIDAY order some supplies so we could build our own machines for it.”

“They still aren’t perfect,” Peter frowns down at some of the gems that they made. “Not as good looking or detailed as some of the pros, but we do know that we’ve made some fast progress in it, and we’re going to keep trying to improve this along with our baking and cooking.”

“Kid,” Tony smiles. “I don’t really care how good these ‘pros’ might be; this all looks amazing, and you got this good in a month?”

The man is currently looking at a replica of the helmet and arc reactor from the earlier models of his suit. It’s true that the helmet doesn’t look as smooth or neat as some of the other works, but the arc reactor is a thing of beauty. It almost seems like it’s glowing on its own.

“Seriously, guys,” Sam nods in approval. “This is cool.”

“Thanks.” The two sweet crafters chuckle together.

“So,” Nat smirks. “If they’re sugar, it means they’re edible, right?”

“Yep,” Peter pops. “It’s pretty solid, so stick with some of the small stuff, like the gems and flowers; but you can just have the sugar melt in your mouth or you can crunch on it like rock candy. It also might not be too flavorful. We were focusing more on the design aspects than the taste.”

“I would warn you, though,” Harley adds. “It might shatter into sharper points.”

“We are not liable for any chipped teeth or other injuries that you might get while eating them,” Peter advises.

Nat takes a small ruby and pops it into her mouth. Obviously, it’s sweet. Not much flavor, sure, but she still gets the hint of cherry from it. Everyone else takes their own little sweet, enjoying the candy wonderland that they’ve stepped into as it slowly melts in their mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Figured this would give me more room to be creative with what they make. Sugar art is just so amazing.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	23. …Be With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a nerd celebration!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idea given by ChaoticNeutral18. Enjoy!

Chapter 23: …Be with You

“Almost done with the batter, Ned?”

“Just about.”

“Cool. When you’re done, check the icings and paints. See if they’re the shades you want.”

“You know them as good as I do.”

“But it’s always nice to have a second opinion.”

“Alright, batter’s ready to check.”

“Swap.”

Ned hands Peter the mixing bowl, while Ned goes over to the various bowls of icing.

“Everything looks good on the different shades,” the computer whiz reports. “And we still have plenty noncolored if we need more.”

“And you did an amazing job at mixing,” Peter compliments him. “Let’s get this first layer in the oven. Then, we can start on the other details of it, and I can mix the paint.”

“I just wanna say again how great this idea is,” Ned smiles at his best friend. “When’s Harley getting here?”

“In a bit. He’s still doing something in the lab. He’ll be helping out with the decorating.”

“Awesome.”

***

It took a few hours to finish the entire thing, even when Harley came up to help. Detail work on the outside and the coloring is done by Peter and Ned using edible paint. They both have a lot of experience from painting models. That left Harley to complete the rest of the icing and layers of cake for the larger parts of the piece, as well as the Rice Krispy Treat structure for some of the more precarious parts of it. He’s also in charge of the larger portion of the fondant work. They need a clean and flat surface on a big part of the cake to finish the details. Finally, though, they pin the last of the small, sugar and fondant crafted objects onto the towering, but thinner, layered cake backdrop for their creation.

“It’s done,” Peter declares triumphantly.

“And it looks amazing,” Ned agrees.

“We’d better get some pictures and post them online,” Harley picks up the camera.

***

There’s a picture that was posted on three separate social media profiles. One was a small-town science blog that has recently started showing his new internship at Stark Industries and his school life after transferring to one of the most reputable STEM high schools in the country. It’s also started posting a whole bunch of different food-based pictures that have gained a decent following for it.

The second is a fairly well-known New York based robotics and programming blog. It’s also known for having in depth analysis about various sci-fi and fantasy topics.  
The third is probably the most popular of them, simply because of the variety of posts. They started of as a simple sci-fi and fantasy blog that was tagged in a lot of the posts that the second blog participated in. Then, they posted an amazing view of the New York sunset. More photography pics continued on it, with varying angles and an improvement of skill. After which, the blog began to show an in-depth look at Stark Industries and their scientists. It almost became an advertising place to humanize the company. Then, it began to show pictures and descriptions of delicious looking pastries and other baked goods. Mouthwatering things that would occasionally have recipes posted with them. Now, however, this particular post is going back to its roots, as well as adding something from the newer posts.

The album of photos that was posted on all three blogs simultaneously is a detailed interstellar battle between an Imperial Star Destroyer and the Rebel Alliance. X-wings and Tie fighters fly around on the dark backdrop that’s checkered with stars. There are explosions in the air, and on the Star Destroyer itself, as both sides take damage in the fight. In the midst of the battle, you can see a single unique ship, the Millennium Falcon, flying around in the star-dotted background. There are close ups in the album, showing the detail of each and every ship in the work. There are multiple people who gape at the pictures, marveling at the time and effort that must’ve gone with it. The caption for the entire thing, though, is what really set the internet on fire.

“Every piece of this is edible. Details of the creation in the description. Time lapse in next post. Happy Star Wars Day! And May the 4th Be with You!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Three geeks celebrating a very important holiday.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	24. Visiting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The more extreme version of visiting your friends house and being introduced to their family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a bit, but I've managed to pull this chapter out.
> 
> Inspired in part by a request by JaDePeacock a while ago, but also given my own little twist to it.

Chapter 24: Visiting

As they step off of the quinjet, the three teens gape at their surroundings. Next to them, Michelle Jones isn’t outright gaping, but she still shows a small amount of shock at the sight laid out before her. It’s completely understandable. Not everyday that a group of outsiders comes to the Wakandan capital.

“You’re here!”

They all turn to see Shuri jogging towards them. She wraps the four of them in a big hug while her brother and guards follow and approach the adults.

“Stark,” T’Challa opens his arms in welcome. “It is good to see you.”

“Thanks for the invite,” the other man replies. “And thank you for letting us bring the kids.”

“If I hadn’t, my sister would have thrown a fit,” the Black Panther chuckles. “Why don’t we head inside?”

“Let’s go,” Shuri starts pulling at Harley and Peter’s arms impatiently. “I wanna give you the tour.”

The two boys let themselves be dragged into the palace while Ned and MJ follow quickly behind.

***

They’re all in heaven. The tech; the culture; and, of course, the food.

Peter and Harley have been especially enthusiastic to hit the kitchen when they aren’t in the labs or exploring. They’ve been trying to learn more about various types of food from around the world. Despite Shuri living with them for so long, they hadn’t learned much in the way of Wakandan cuisine. They’d been able to get some recipes from contacting Wakanda while she was there, but there’s still a big difference between following a recipe and actually having someone there teaching you.

The Wakandan cooks, for their part, are always happy to have new people in the kitchen if they know what they’re doing or are enthusiastic about learning. They’re also more than ready to work with the two people who caused Princess Shuri to develop such a drive to learn something that she’s been so hesitant to before. The group bounces ideas off of each other, learning thing through the knowledge of people outside of their normal circles. Still, there’s one thing in particular that kind of comes out of left field for one of the two teens.

***

“You must be Harley.”

The boy looks up from where he’s standing over a simmering pot to see an older woman smiling warmly at him. He’s in the kitchen alone right now. He wanted to try out a couple of dishes while Peter is training with the Wakandan guards. He frowns in confusion. He’s sure he’s seen this person somewhere before, but he doesn’t remember where.

“Yes,” Harley frowns. “I am. And you are?”

“Pardon my manners,” she lets out a small laugh. “You my call me Ramonda.”

“Oh,” the teens eyes widen. “You’re Shuri’s mother. I’m really sorry for not recognizing you, Your Highness.”

“That’s completely understandable,” she assuages his worries. “I do not have as much of a public face as T’Challa. It is much less stressful this way. I just came by to meet the boy my daughter talks about so much. You and Mr. Parker have left quite an impression on her, but you especially.”

“Well,” Harley smiles, blushing slightly. “We did hang out a lot at the Compound.”

“Yes,” she laughs again. “I have seen the pictures from her guards. With the outreach program picking up pace, and T’Challa becoming more involved with the Avengers, I expect her to be visiting America a good deal more in the future. It would put my heart at ease if you could take care of her in that time.”

“Of course, Your Highness.”

“Please, you can address me as Ramonda, or perhaps Umama, if you would prefer. It is another title I have been called before,” she looks over at the pot. “Now, what is it that you are making? It smells wonderful.”

“I’m just seeing if I can mix some of your native spices with some of the things that I liked using back home, see how they blend together. I figured a stew would be a fairly good way to do that. It’s turned out well so far.”

“Yes,” she looks at the collection of spices and food around him before turning back to him. “It seems like it has. I will gather a few ingredients myself. I would like to show you some dishes when you are done there. They are some of Shuri’s favorites, and I feel like she would greatly appreciate you making them for her while she is with you.”

Harley finishes up his small pot of stew, tastes it, makes notes of what might need improving, and allows Ramonda to try it as well. She has her own small critiques to the recipe.

“However,” she concludes. “It is still well beyond what most can achieve, even in our kitchens.”

With that done, for now, Harley stands side by side with the other woman as she carefully instructs him on a few simple and more complex dishes that Shuri has enjoyed since she was a toddler.

“This was one she would love when she was sick,” the mother smiles softly as they mix the soup. “While the plate before is something for special occasions or accomplishments. It was what I made for her when she received her first online degree, and again when she’d earned her title of Head of Wakanda’s Science Division.”

They continue on with the tutoring. The Queen of Wakanda would teach, correcting anything she might see wrong or simply explaining how Shuri’s preferences for the food differ from the norm of what the cooks here might have taught Harley before. All the while, Harley Keener is getting an in depth look into Shuri’s childhood and the background behind each meal Harley is being taught.

“Now,” Ramonda gives the boy a smile. “I believe we had better not make too much more food for today. It would be quite a waste if we did not eat what we prepared. Let’s bring some of these to the training rooms, I hear that Mr. Parker has quite an appetite, and I know that T’Challa and the other warriors are usually hungry after they spar.”

***

It’s been a few weeks, and the teens have had a blast.

Ned pretty much lived in the lab. Sure, he would explore the palace on occasion, and he and the others were even allowed down in the mines when they were escorted. Other than that, however, he was sciencing it up in the lab. When the others were there, he would work with them on whatever random project they could come up with. When they weren’t, he would be given limited access to the blueprint database that Shuri has. It’s limited, so there’s nothing too dangerous or classified, but he still managed to find some pretty awesome stuff through it. He’d also pick the brains of any of the scientists that didn’t seem too busy while he was there. The adults are all used to Shuri, another overexcited teenager, so they were happy to teach the teen if they weren’t in the middle of a project.

Michelle spent a good amount of time in the labs with the boys, but she spent even more of it wandering around the area. She’d go on treks about the palace, sometimes with Peter, sometimes with Shuri, and other times just on her own. The sights, the culture, and just the feel of air around her. This place is great. She even got permission to go out into the city and the surrounding area under guard. It was great to just relax, watching the picturesque scenery. A lot of times she would have her sketchbook with her, but others, she would just set it aside to watch the entire thing pass by.

Peter, wow, was this place perfect for Peter. The lab, with its state-of-the-art technology, was only a small portion of it. As much as he enjoyed hanging out with the guys and Shuri in the lab; as much as he loved learning so much from the new environment and the access to these resources; he was just drawn to so many other things. He spent plenty of time in the training rooms, trying to get a bit of hand to hand practice with some of the greatest fighters in the world. He always made sure that he spent time with MJ, going off with her through the palace or having picnics surrounded by the nature of Wakanda outside of the city. He would bring his camera with him, taking photographs of his trips. Of course, all of the food for those picnics was prepared by Peter, because the kitchen, oh man, the kitchen. So many new spices and foods that he’s had the opportunity to learn. It was a wonderland, and the cooks were happy to teach him.

Still, the biggest surprise for everyone was probably Harley.

“Goodbye, Umama,” Harley hugs the Queen of Wakanda.

“Visit us whenever you are available, Harley,” she returns the hug fondly.

Everyone around just stares at the scene in shock. The other American teens are looking at the pair in confusion, with Tony, T’Challa, and Shuri having close to the same reaction. The two Wakandan siblings seem to have a slight amount of suspicion and in their eyes. A few of the, normally stoic, guards behind the procession actually have their eyes widen in their own displays of shock. A few of the guards, the ones that are basically dedicated to protecting Ramonda and the other elders, have amusement on their faces. They were the ones that had been watching the bond formed between the Queen Mother and the young Keener boy for his entire visit.

Harley had been in the lab about as much as Peter had been. He’d stay long after Peter would leave, bonding with Shuri and Ned while the spiderling went off with either MJ or trained his fighting abilities a bit more. Harley would then take the time to walk around with Shuri while she gives him tours of the palace, and occasionally the surrounding area. However, when he wasn’t with any of the teens, he was still up in the other parts of the palace. Either just walking around with Ramonda or practicing in the kitchen. Peter would find his friend already well into cooking when he’d enter the kitchen, and Harley would come back after Ramonda’s daily tasks are completed to learn a bit more from her. The boy would be regularly seen chatting with the woman by more than a few guards and he has been introduced to many of the different elders of the nation in passing. His naturally polite and calm personality, as well as his intelligence, adaptability, and support from the Queen Mother, helped him become at least an acquaintance to many of the older members of the nation. During his time here, Harley Keener has not just enhanced his scientific abilities by leaps and bounds, but also his cooking skills, and inadvertently became a major contact between the Wakandan nation and the outside world.

***

The group of non-Wakandans have left for home, and T’Challa is standing with Ramonda, looking out over the Capital from a window.

“Mother,” the King of Wakanda has a small smirk on his face. “What was that?”

The Queen Mother of Wakanda knows exactly what he’s talking about. “What is wrong with me saying goodbye to one of our guests? You had bonded quite well with Mr. Parker during your sparring sessions, the science division got along with the Leeds boy, and a few members of the Dora said their farewells to Ms. Jones.”

“What I was wondering about is how you managed to become so close to him. I have heard talk as they left that you had spent a great amount of time with the Keener boy, and had spoken with and shared many things with him.”

“I will admit that some of my interest in the boy was from Shuri’s and her guards’ correspondence. She seemed to be around him the most, and the pictures and reports sparked some interest.”

“And introducing him to the elders?”

With that, the Queen Mother of Wakanda sighs. “Shuri is growing up. She has not had the opportunity to develop deep relationships with people her own age. Despite not being the bearer of the mantle of the Black Panther, any of her relationships will be under watch by the elders. I wished to ensure that they did not show immediate disproval should any feelings develop between her and someone outside of Wakanda. Her love life would be complicated enough without having the disapproval of the elders.”

“And you believe she will develop feelings for this Keener boy?”

“I believe it is a possibility,” she tells him. “One that I wished to prepare for. It is ultimately up to Shuri to sort out her feelings, whether or not she develops them towards anyone, but she should have that freedom.” Then she smiles. “I also enjoyed talking with Harley Keener. He is a sweet boy, and quite talented in cooking. Speaking of which,” Ramonda wraps her arm around T’Challa’s and pulls him away from the window. “Come, I have something you must try.”

“Where are we going?” The Black Panther frowns in confusion.

“To the kitchen, of course. I taught the boy many dishes, but he also taught me more than a few. We also did much experimenting. It was quite fun. At times, it felt like I was a child again. I would like to know how they taste to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ramonda wants her daughter to be happy. There are many things that Wakandan royalty will be restricted in, but she'll use her abilities to make sure that Shuri is as free as possible to make her own choices.
> 
> Hope you all like the direction I'm developing Harley as a character.
> 
> This is also the first step in having him and Shuri eventually get together. Don't know how long it will be, because these sorts of things don't usually happen overnight, but it'll happen.
> 
> Any requests are appreciated.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	25. Don't Count Your Chickens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People argue. Friends argue. At least these two have a good way of settling it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based off of a cool clip I saw online.

Chapter 25: Don’t Count Your Chickens

It doesn’t happen very often, relatively speaking. The two of them are usually thick as thieves. However, it’s been known to happen on occasion. A once in a blue moon thing.

Peter and Harley are having an argument.

It’s always something pretty small whenever it happens. Comparing movies or TV shows. Sometimes debates over taste preferences, or even over various sciences. Most of these things would have some other people coming to blows, but this pair is close enough that they are really minor in the grand theme of things. Still, they are disagreements, and they’re between two different geniuses. Because of that, a lot of thought goes into some of their more passionate arguments, and many of them don’t have any real ending. That is why, if they can’t convince each other, they try to find a way to end it. Obviously, they’re both as stubborn as they are smart, so neither one will cave if they think they’re right. Still, through the time they’ve spent together, they have discovered a way to settle these arguments. Not with actually settling them, but with a competition.

Which is why, both of them are in the kitchen. They couldn’t make it anything physical, because Peter would have an unfair advantage. They couldn’t make it very science related, because there aren’t very many things that they could compare with that, and some of their arguments are about science anyways. They couldn’t do anything involving a taste test for a similar reason. That’s why, while it is still food related, it’s a bit more skill related than taste.

Two boys, two cutting boards, two perfectly sharpened knives, and two chickens.

“No blindfolds this time?” Harley looks over at Peter.

“Mr. Stark told us we couldn’t do that anymore,” he responds.

“But we didn’t even cut ourselves.”

“I know, but he got upset about it, and FRIDAY will snitch if we try it again.”

“Fine,” Harley sighs. “Same as always.”

“First to finish,” Peter nods. “Any injuries are an automatic loss.”

“If it’s not neat enough, it’s also a loss,” Harley adds.

Peter nods in agreement, and they ready themselves.

They’ve gone through a lot of different things. De-boning a fish and how uniformly or thinly they can cut ingredients. They’d debated cutting chicken before, but what had sealed the deal was when they saw Gordan Ramsey doing it blindfolded. From then on, they’d used that as their main competition. After doing it blindfolded more than a few times, Tony Stark discovered what was happening and had a conniption. Then, he proceeded to ban the inhibition of senses during their challenges. Annoying, but he threatened to tell Aunt May and Harley’s mom, so they had no choice.

“FRIDAY,” Peter calls to the AI. “Start us off.”

“On your marks,” FRIDAY begins calmly. “Get set. Begin.”

***

“So,” Nat chews on her fried chicken. “What was this one about?”

It takes a few moments for the pair of teens to realize that she’s talking to them. When they do, they swallow their food and give her a confused look.

“What do you mean?” Peter asked.

“You only really make chicken when you’re doing that whole ‘settling an argument’ thing that you do,” she explains. “It used to be fish, but now,” she takes anther bite. “It’s chicken. So, what was the argument, and who won?”

“Um,” Peter mumbles. “Harley won this time.”

“It was a close thing,” the winner tells the group. “But Peter forgot his own strength on the cutting board and got a splinter.”

“It’s all healed up,” Peter tries to calm the concerned looks around him. “I even had Karen give it a scan and asked one of Doctor Cho’s people about it.”

“Good,” Tony nods firmly.

“So,” Bucky keeps the conversation going. “What was the argument?”

Peter and Harley avoid everyone’s eyes, which only makes them even more curious. The looks pressure them a bit until they finally cave, and Harley answers.

“We were trying to decide who we thought was the Strongest Avenger.”

More silence. Expectant looks come from all around the table.

“I was going for Thor,” Harley mumbles.

The entire table deflates at that. I mean, it’s not like it isn’t understandable. It’s Thor for pity’s sake. An actual Norse god would be up there on anyone’s list.

“And I said the Hulk,” Peter answers.

“What?” Tony gapes. “It’s disappointing enough that Harley chose Point Break, but Peter,” he puts his hand on his heart. “Betrayal.”

“‘M sorry, Mr. Stark,” a slight blush shows on his face. “You’re still one of my favorites, but we were talking about the ‘Strongest Avenger.’ The Hulk is like one hundred percent muscle.”

There’s grumbling from Tony, but he can’t really refute that argument.

A slightly jovial silence is prevalent for the rest of the meal. Only Nat actually notices that, sitting next to her, Bruce Banner can’t seem to keep a smirk off of his face. Bruce, for his part, can’t help but feel a bit of amusement at the gloating voice and feelings coming from the Hulk in the back of his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you haven't seen the video of Gordan Ramsey cutting apart a chicken blindfolded, look it up. It's pretty cool.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


	26. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Home is where the heart is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's ready to cry?!
> 
> Happy tears this time, but I did tear up a bit when writing this.
> 
> Enjoy!

Chapter 26: Family

When Harley walks out of school for the weekend, he stops short. The rest of the group almost runs into him as they come out the doors.

“Harley?” Peter looks at him. “What’s going on?”

But Harley Keener isn’t paying attention to his friends. His eyes are facing forward, wide and almost tearing up.

“Ma?”

Standing next to Happy are two familiar faces to Harley. His mother, Grace, and his sister, Abby, grinning in front of a limousine. The boy runs, sprinting towards them. He barely slows down in time to not knock his mother over, before wrapping her in a big hug and pulling his giggling little sister in with them.

“What are you doing here?” The boy lets out a wet laugh.

“Break’s started,” Abby pulls away, smiling widely. “So, we came to visit.”

“What about work?” Harley’s eyes turn to his mother in concern.

“Diner’s being renovated,” she grins. “And I quit the other two ever since ya started sending your internship checks home.”

Which is true. Harley has a paid internship at Stark Industries. The check isn’t any bigger than a lower level employee, wouldn’t be fair to the college interns if it was, but he’s basically got all of his needs cared for at the Compound, and Tony pretty much buys anything he wants to a degree, so he can send the entire thing back to his family. He’s also got a scholarship, so the money that his mom was saving for his education can go to helping Abby. Still, this visit was one of the last things he’d expected.

His mother looks behind him. “Are these the friends you write us about?”

He turns to see that the others had come up behind him, smiling.

“Ma, Abby,” Harley faces the other teens. “These are Peter, Ned, and MJ.”

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Keener,” Peter holds out his hand to shake.

“Oh, there’ll be none of that,” she pulls the boy into a hug. “Harley’s told us all about you. Thank you for taking care of my boy.”

“It was my pleasure,” he grins. “He’s told us a lot about both of you, too.”

“C’mon,” Happy motions with a small grin on his face. “You guys can talk on the way up to the Compound.”

***

“This place is so cool, Harls! We got here in a private jet! Then, we got picked up in a limo! And I even got my own room! And it’s so big! You actually live here?!”

His little sister has been talking his ear off for the entire ride up. It used to be so annoying to him, but now he can’t help but smile because of it. He realizes how much he missed her. Now, he’s standing in the elevator at the Compound, with an excited and jittery sister and his mother just hanging on his arm while she talks with his friends. The elevator opens, and the group heads into the commons area, like the teens always do when they come to the Compound together. What isn’t exactly something that happens everyday is who they see in the commons area.

There are usually at least a few members of the team just roaming around the place. I mean, this is akin to a home for most of them, so that’s understandable. When they aren’t in their rooms, they could be in the training rooms, the kitchen, the labs, the vents, the commons area, and even anywhere in any of the many buildings and different fields and forests that count as the area of the Compound.

Today, though, every single member of the team is loitering in the commons and kitchen. They all seem to turn simultaneously towards the group as they walk through the door. Obviously, they weren’t there when the pair first came to drop off their stuff, because Abby and Grace are just stunned. Harley gently tugs his mother forward, while MJ guides his little sister to the waiting heroes.

“Hello, Ms. Keener,” Mr. Stark steps forward first. “It’s good to see you again.”

“You, too, Mr. Stark,” she relaxes slightly at the familiar face. “Thank you so much for letting us come visit.”

“Of course,” he chuckles. “Harley’s like family to all of us, which means that you’re a part of that family. You’re always welcome up here, anytime you want. Just call us, and I’ll send transport.”

With that, each member of the team comes up and introduces themselves. By the end, both mother and daughter are stunned and blushing from talking to the international heroes.

“How do you deal with this?” Ms. Keener whispers to her son.

“You get used to it,” he chuckles.

“It gets especially easy after you see them fight over the remote,” Peter pops in.

“Or a slice of cake,” MJ adds.

“Speaking of which,” Clint speaks up. “When’s dinner?”

“Keep your shorts on,” Harley rolls his eyes. “I’ll start makin’ it after I Mom and Abs a tour of the building.”

Both members of his family are a little shocked at how he talks to one of the Avengers, but they follow behind him as he leads them down the hall to the first part of their tour.

***

Abby sighs as she lays her head down on the table. It’s a big place, with a lot of amazing things. All of that excitement, seeing where her brother has been living and what he’s been working on. Seeing a makeshift Iron-man suit at her brother’s work station. Knowing that her brother could be an Avenger in the future! It’s all so amazing, and wonderful, and a little scary. Despite all of that, and the admittedly small bit of jealousy she has towards her brother for being able to stay here, she couldn’t be happier for him. However, even with all of that, she’s missed something more than ever since her brother has been gone.

Since she was barely in elementary school, her mom has been busy. Even though at first, she didn’t really understand why Mom couldn’t be home to welcome her when she stepped off of the bus, she always knew that Harley would be there. He would either be in the garage, working on some project or another he’d built from parts from the scrapyard, or he’d be in the house, standing over a simmering pot of something.

It was always so comforting smelling that food, it would remind her that she was home. Now, as she sits at the table, she breathes in and smells that same scent again. Different, but somehow the same, and she can feel herself start to tear up again. It didn’t actually hit her how much she missed him until now.

Finally, the table is set, and she can dig into her meal. She sniffles slightly, partially because the heat and slight spice is making her nose run, and partially because she can finally eat her brother’s food for the first time in so long. She feels as much at home here, at this table, as she does in Tennessee, and she couldn’t be happier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They aren't going to be mainstays in this fic, but the Keeners will show themselves every once in a while.
> 
> Also, I don't actually know if Harley's family actually has names, so I went with a couple that I thought fit them. If they actually have official names, let me know and I can change it.
> 
> Comments and Kudos. Don't be mean.


End file.
